Given the impending general election, it would not be unreasonable for the seasoned observer to strike a note of cynicism in response to the barrage of announcements from politicians setting out how only they have solutions to the public finance and service provision dilemmas facing the country. Yet this week’s Smarter government paper appears to have some merit on its side. Yes, it is heavy on the jargon and rhetoric of ‘reform’, but there are some important ideas worth a further look, especially for the local government community.
The overriding theme of efficiency and money saving changes to the way government is run produces some interesting headlines, including the merger or termination of 120 quangos. Sir Michael Bichard’s Total Place initiative retains top billing and there are signs that ministers are beginning to recognise its profound consequences.
Take, for instance, the greater budgetary pooling between local agencies, a welcome commitment, but one that will only happen if harder incentives overcome the tendency for agencies to hoard budgets, especially when finances are being cut back. I would urge ministers to consider a year-on-year incremental requirement to pool a small portion of budgets locally, coupled with a reward grant for those areas that most enthusiastically embrace a local pooling culture.
Cutting bureaucracy also threads its way through this paper. The government commits itself to radically downsizing of the 188 national performance indicators by April, which would imply a complete refresh of the Local Area Agreement process may be on the cards – perhaps timely now in the current economic climate but which would be a significant endeavour for councils to undertake.
The government have decided to encourage councils to take an entrepreneurial approach to trading and new ventures. Local authorities should rise to this challenge even if only to augment their income and take pressure off council tax in the longer term. There is no reason why councils should not broaden their service base and offer mortgages locally, establish universal wifi services, insurance products, community banking or other facilities of benefit to the community, perhaps creating new local jobs in the process.
Other worthwhile proposals include the opening of new data sets for wider public use and the piloting of ‘Social Impact Bonds’ to encourage upfront investment in preventative services. All these reforms come very late in this Parliament, but maybe this is part of the policy fightback observers have been waiting for.
Chris Leslie is director of the New Local Government Network
