I wasnt pushed, says Raynsford

12 May 05
Nick Raynsford, the former local government minister, has told Public Finance that it was his choice to return to the back benches.

13 May 2005

Nick Raynsford, the former local government minister, has told Public Finance that it was his choice to return to the back benches.

The Greenwich MP was removed from his job as local government minister after almost four years in the wake of Labour's general election triumph.

Despite a solid reputation and, apparently, the lobbying efforts of Deputy Prime Minster John Prescott, Raynsford was replaced by a team headed by rising star David Miliband, who was given the new Cabinet-level post of minister of communities and local government.

Phil Woolas, MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth, is his number two, taking the local government brief.

In an interview Raynsford told PF that he was offered a position by Number 10 – believed to be in the Treasury – but decided to leave government. 'It was not the case that I wasn't offered a job,' he said.

Seemingly Raynsford left in fury at not being given a Cabinet post after spending six years as a minister. But asked if that was the case, a diplomatic Raynsford claimed it was 'speculation' and refused 'to go into details'.

Similarly, when asked if he was angered or disappointed by events after the election, he refused to be drawn. 'I am looking forward to more challenges,' he said.

He was more forthcoming when talking about his time in office as local government minister. Raynsford cited the Local Government White Paper 2001, which advocated strong local leadership, and Comprehensive Performance Assessments, as his greatest legacies in local government.

'The idea of having a rigorous system of performance management appraisal is now very widely accepted,' he said.

Raynsford did not foresee any massive policy changes and said his successors would have to implement 'quite a lot of work', including the Lyons Review into the future of local government finance, and extending the concept of directly elected mayors to more cities.

'I have no doubt that in some of our bigger cities a mayor could make a real difference, the way Ken Livingstone has in London.'

A spokesman for the New Local Government Network think-tank said: 'Nick is not only an experienced minister but a real advocate of local government across Whitehall.'

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