Where does local government sit in the new government’s plans?

I know it is early days in the new government’s tenure but local authorities are feeling a bit overlooked in the focus of the national government’s policy announcements since the General Election. The focus of most of those statements have been on the need to foster economic growth and to balance the budget.

We are well aware of the fiscal challenges that the country is facing, but what is the new government’s focus on local communities and local government, which are integral to delivering public services and developing the environment for economic growth?

The only major government announcements, so far, that focus on a local government response are about planning and house building. We will be publishing a briefing on this very soon, but there are lessons to be learned from Ireland on that issue – housing needs to be built in the areas where it is most needed, for the benefit of local economies, not just where it is cheaper to build. It also needs to be tied in with the development of local infrastructure, to ensure that new communities are provided with the services they need to create sustainable communities.

The King’s Speech, in July, announced 24 new bills that are of relevance to local government, but in the two weeks before the summer recess, only two of these were introduced to parliament. As parliament returns and we move towards the Autumn Statement, we hope that some of those other bills will be introduced, and we will have a clearer view of what local councils are being expected to deliver on, over the coming years, and what resources will be available to assist us in doing so.

The big questions that are not being answered by the new government’s policy announcements, thus far, have been in the fields of social care and education. These are costly public services that don’t immediately lend themselves to contribute to policies on economic growth, but that is a short-term view of the benefits of providing long-term educational goals and the provision of social care services that enable people to re-engage with the local economy.

I await the emergence of the new government’s policy thinking on the longer-term investments in economic growth that have to encompass the education and social care agendas. At present, there is a focus on the immediate fiscal challenges in addressing the budget gap that does not look at the long-term challenges that local government has to face.

The new government has five years to develop and deliver a long-term investment strategy. It needs to move out of its campaigning mode, which it seems to be stuck in at the moment (see Sir Keir Starmer’s speech in the Downing Street rose garden on Wednesday), and engage with local councils and communities to develop that strategy.

Where are local communities and local government in the new national government’s strategy, beyond housing and planning? Let’s hope it develops over the coming weeks. The LGIU will be keeping a close eye on the new government’s policy proposals, as they develop, and will keep you informed of the impact they might have on the development of your policies and practices.

Watch this space.