Tag Archives: councils

Mark Hofman

The English Devolution White Paper: Tearing the heart out of our local communities?

By Mark Hofman | Wed 18th December 2024 - 11:30 am

Over the past 48 hours, the government’s proposed plan for devolution has sparked significant concern. The experience in Watford and Hertfordshire serves as a warning for what could soon be faced by communities across the country. Splitting Hertfordshire into two blocks—east and west—and scrapping councils like Watford Borough Council (WBC) is not an isolated issue; it is emblematic of a broader strategy that risks undermining local democracy nationwide.

This plan is not just a restructuring of local governance; it’s a fundamental threat to the democratic principles we hold dear. Councils like WBC play a vital role in our communities. They offer essential face-to-face support at town halls and provide accessible forums for public participation in local decision-making, such as Development Management Committee (DMC) meetings, which are consistently well-attended by residents. Removing these structures will alienate the very people these institutions are meant to serve.

Moreover, councils like WBC play an important role in fostering a sense of belonging and civic pride. They organise cherished community events, including the annual fireworks display, Christmas decorations across the town, and free music and drama performances. During the pandemic, many councils were on the front line of distributing COVID-19 vaccines and raising funds for local charities. Their maintenance of parks and rollout of electric vehicle infrastructure not only add tangible value to residents’ lives but also contribute to raising property prices. These initiatives create vibrant, connected communities and demonstrate the essential role local councils play in improving quality of life.

Continue reading »
Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged , , and | 14 Comments
Nick Da Costa

Labour’s devolution plans: centralisation in disguise

By Nick Da Costa | Tue 17th December 2024 - 3:23 pm

Labour’s new devolution plans promise to “transfer power out of Westminster,” but don’t be fooled – this isn’t about empowering communities. Instead of genuine decentralisation, Labour is un-devolving power, stripping it from local councils and concentrating it upwards into the hands of regional “super mayors.” Far from fixing local democracy, this plays into Labour’s increasingly authoritarian approach, where control is centralised under a single figure while local voices are sidelined.

The plans follow the government’s review into local government organisation and devolution, but they take entirely the wrong approach. Labour wants to abolish smaller district councils—the ones closest to residents, who understand local issues like planning, housing, and bin collections—and replace them with vast mega-authorities. Bigger doesn’t mean better. It means more bureaucracy, less accountability, and decisions made further away from the communities they affect.

Continue reading »
Posted in News | Also tagged and | 14 Comments
Mary Reid

Lib Dem councillor calls for online participation in Council meetings

By Mary Reid | Fri 20th September 2024 - 1:43 pm

When lockdown hit us we all turned to Zoom or one of its online rivals to maintain our working and social lives. Local Councils worked out ways of carrying out essential business online, and that included formal Council meetings, although it did require emergency government legislation. In fact, all levels of Government, from Westminster to Parish Councils, met online, or held hybrid (mixed virtual and in-person) meetings, during the pandemic.

The House of Commons adopted hybrid meetings as soon as the technologies for viewing and voting were in place.

In May 2021 Councils were told the emergency legislation no longer applied and that they had to return to fully in-person meetings. This did cause concern for a number of reasons. Social distancing was still in place, and many Council chambers were not large enough to hold all the councillors and officers seated 2 metres apart. Also, some councillors were clinically vulnerable and were still shielding, or were doing so to protect a family member. Not surprisingly, there were many calls for hybrid meetings so people who needed to stay away could participate remotely.

Even Jackie Weaver, of Handforth Parish Council fame, said that it was a dreadful idea to end virtual meetings.

There was also some anger that the Commons continued to hold hybrid meetings for several more months after Councils were forced to stop them.

The Local Government Association has been campaigning for hybrid and virtual meetings ever since. There was evidence that virtual and hybrid meetings had widened participation by both councillors and the public, whereas fully in-person meetings had reduced it.

Over a year ago the BBC reported that councillors in 10% of councils were standing down because of the inflexibility.  Reasons cited included disability, illness and caring duties. We should also mention County Councils and large rural District Councils where travelling to meetings can be very time consuming.

The issue has not gone away. This week a Lib Dem councillor, Jennie Jagger, got the unanimous backing of Worcester Council to call for options for remote participation in Council meetings. In Jennie’s case she is pregnant and concerned about how she will manage with a young baby, but she points out that a flexible approach will allow people with disabilities or full-time jobs to participate as well as those with caring responsibilities.

Continue reading »
Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged and | 2 Comments
Michal Siewniak

The importance of community consultation

By Michal Siewniak | Thu 6th October 2022 - 12:37 pm

Quite recently, I was sitting in a council chamber when the topic of consultation was brought up by one of my fellow councillors. It made me think! I often wonder what springs to our minds when someone says – ‘community consultation’. I often have mixed feelings. On one hand, I am glad that someone asks a question which may be relevant and important to me. However, in too many cases, our actual contribution is not necessarily taken into the consideration. Far too often, the decision is already made and we can’t really influence it. It feels like we are fed up with simply ‘being consulted’ for no real reason.

Local authorities, government, businesses, they all want to listen to our opinions. We are always told that our ‘voice’ matters. Examples? Closure of a local hospital, cuts in bus provision or even Brexit which in my opinion could fall into the category of ‘community consultation’ (it was an advisory referendum). More recently, some would argue (not me) that the selection process of the Conservative Party Leader was part of a consultation. I also wonder whether any elections could be called a “consultation exercise”. We ask residents’ their opinions on topics, often in line with a party policy, of local or national importance. This is how, I hope, we would make our political judgment. Moreover, we actively encourage people to vote to enhance and strengthen our civic participation process.

Continue reading »
Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged | 5 Comments
Gary Malcolm

Tory centralisation has failed us on Coronavirus. It’s time to consider the local alternatives.

By Gary Malcolm | Thu 25th June 2020 - 9:53 am

We have seen how the government has acted too slow to implement a lockdown and not given councils enough resources to be able to help people locally.

Coronavirus has also shown us how the Tory government believes it is best to deal with the Coronavirus centrally rather than making more use of local government. As a Liberal Democrat I believe strongly in localism – one of the party’s founding principles.

In Ealing, despite the Council being run by the Labour party, the Liberal Democrats have managed to take a more active role than many opposition parties. Liberal Democrats in Ealing have been able to make decisions locally that affect the people we serve during the Coronavirus period.

To deal with Coronavirus effectively, we need money and support from the national government – not dictates. It is important there is trust in the local government partners. Yet this Tory government has done exactly the opposite of that.

Firstly, on Personal Protective Equipment (PPE): if we had waited for the government’s supplies to arrive, our care homes would have run out very quickly. Instead we bought large supplies alongside other West London boroughs so that our care homes had regular supplies.

Continue reading »
Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged | 5 Comments
Advert

Recent Comments

  • Jenny Barnes
    I'd be interested to know if Daisy Cooper thinks that just cutting taxes will create economic growth. Would that growth increase activity enough to compensate...
  • Nigel Jones
    Likewise the many passages in both Old and New Testaments that show God's strong care for the poor. Then there are the prophets' attacks on leaders who don't ca...
  • Nigel Jones
    We read in Luke's gospel that a group of Jewish people attempted to kill Jesus because he preached a message about occasions when prophets working under God aid...
  • Peter Davies
    @Roland Absolute poverty in India has dramatically declined since 1993. A new rich and a large middle class has emerged but the poor are better off too....
  • Roland
    >” witness India’s miserable economic progress from 1947 until the Manmohan Singh reforms of 1993.” Shame the economic benefits seem to have benefited...