Think-tank urges radical shake-up of local government
Local government needs to be radically reformed if it is to meet the needs of modern society.
That is the conclusion of think-tank the New Local Government Network (NLGN), which argues that both larger city level councils and smaller community organisations are needed if local democracy is to be revived.
Recent attempts to change the local government structure have failed after the public rejected the option of regional assemblies in the north, but the NLGN is convinced that some reform is needed.
Study author Professor Gerry Stoker of Manchester University suggests that government is needed at a strategic ‘super-sized’ city level to oversee efficient delivery of public services such as integrated transport.
Potential super-sized councils could see the existing City of Manchester joined by Tameside, Trafford, Salford and Stockport. And in the capital, London would be divided into a number of groupings containing at least four existing boroughs.
At a local level, there would be smaller organisations, a greater focus on “community leadership” and making each area a better place to live. This would see initiatives from community groups running alongside those from local authorities.
Professor Stoker said: “We have to reinvent local government to meet the new circumstances of the 21st century and develop institutions that can help sustain our urban, suburban and rural lifestyles. We need a system capable of meeting the challenges and richness of the economic, social and ecological realities of our world now and for the next quarter of a century.
“A key challenge is deciding the basis on which to draw up a city region, but all options fundamentally rest on super-sizing around a core set of towns and cities. In areas without this core, super-size counties might provide the base. Crucially we need to accept that different systems will suit the circumstances of different parts of England.”
