13 July 2009
Well I am just back from another packed local government conference.
With only, at most, eleven months before the next general election the burning issue was public finances.
The good news is that all political parties want to give local government more powers. Trusting people and giving them more power and control over their lives appeals to me and I will look forward to the scrapping of all those unnecessary layers of bureaucracy which stop us doing our job.
Britain is facing a crisis of confidence in democracy. Locally elected councils representing the real needs of millions of people can, I am sure, combat plummeting trust in Westminster politics and rebuild faith in the political system.
The bad news is that there won’t be a lot more money. Local councils will have to show that we can provide good local services at a time when funding is incredibly tight. I do not for one moment pretend that this will be easy. But we must begin by fighting the completely outdated notion that having limited finances just means painful cuts to frontline services.
We will have to find innovative ways of working efficiently. Councils have already delivered great value for money. I am sure that it might surprise people to hear that local government is officially the most efficient part of the public sector!
Cllr Peter Thompson
Leader
London Borough of Hounslow
