Reform can't be limited to Parliament
Author: Dermot FinchDate: 11/06/2009
Publication: Local Government Chronicle
Constitutional reform used to be boring. Not any more. Triggered by the expenses scandal, the race is now on to shake up Parliament. The new Cabinet and all three main parties (and Esther Rantzen) are falling over themselves to reform the entire political system.
Meanwhile, the recession continues. Three million will be unemployed this time next year - including quite a few MPs.
Both these crises call for much greater devolution of powers from Whitehall and Westminster to voters and local councils.
There's a compelling political case for reforming Parliament and re-connecting MPs with their voters. And there's an urgent economic case for injecting our towns and cities with more financial power. As we push for the first, let's not forget the second.
We've had a rhetorical avalanche of ideas on constitutional reform. But before we get too excited, do you remember Gordon Brown's Governance of Britain green paper two years ago? It promised a "national conversation" about a "new relationship between government and citizen" and contained a lot of worthy proposals, including Commons committees for every English region and weekend general elections. But attempts to devolve power from Whitehall have been sidelined, from the Power Commission to the Lyons Review.
Before she quit, Hazel Blears' empowerment agenda ran aground in Parliament. The government remains ambivalent on elected mayors. And while the Sub-National Review has made progress on its promise for powerful city-regions, it has been far too technocratic.
The Tories have good ideas on decentralisation. Their Control Shift Green Paper proposals include more financial powers for councils and elected mayors in 12 cities, and Mr Cameron has promised the most dramatic redistribution of power in living memory. But it's easy to talk up devolution in opposition - much harder to implement it in Government.
Having secured control of Bristol, the Liberal Democrats, who now run five out of eight of England's Core Cities, are strong devolutionaries. But they have yet to produce any radical proposals for beefing up local government in England.
Business leaders have also been pretty quiet on all this. They would benefit from more powerful cities, but Sir Alan never talks about that.
It's time to talk up decentralisation. The recession has hit UK cities very differently, demanding city-level approaches to employment, house building and transport.
The fiscal squeeze will require major new efficiencies. Devolved single budgets for cities like Birmingham would help with that. Powerful cities with financial powers would result in higher-calibre councillors and higher voter turnout. More business people as elected councillors would help re-build trust between councils and business.
Elected mayors have their part to play, too. They can take tough decisions on transport and housing; they are directly accountable; and they tend to attract higher turnouts. Maverick, independent mayors look more appealing after the MP expenses saga.
We do need sweeping constitutional reforms in Parliament. But the need for reform does not end there. Whitehall and Parliament must hand financial powers to our towns and cities. This will re-engage local voters and help pave the way for economic recovery.
John Denham and colleagues, take note
A version of this article first appeared in Local Government Chronicle.
