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Concordat to unleash potential of local communities

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT News Release (242) issued by The Government News Network on 12 December 2007

An historic new written agreement which will radically transform the relationship between central and local government and which sets out unprecedented new freedoms for local areas and communities has been signed by Communities Secretary Hazel Blears and LGA Chairman Sir Simon Milton today.

The Central-Local Concordat is the culmination of months of careful negotiation with local government and meets a key commitment in delivering what Gordon Brown has called a fundamental transformation in the way we govern, shifting more power to local communities and away from the state.

It commits Government to reducing unnecessary intervention saying that: 'Councils have the right to lead the delivery of public services in their area and shape its future without unnecessary direction or control' and that both local and central government have the responsibility to 'devolve power and engage and empower communities and individual citizens - in debate and decision making and in shaping and delivering services.'

It commits central and local government to work together towards giving people a clearer understanding of what public money is spent in their area, and towards giving councils greater flexibility in their funding, for example by reducing ring-fencing of money and through the proposed Business Rate Supplements. The Government remains firmly of the view that the council tax is an effective local tax and that the current local government finance system is guided by the principles of transparency, clarity and accountability. The Government also remains committed to ensuring that taxpayers are protected from excessive council tax increases.

The Concordat commits local government to provide strong leadership, to work with their partners and to collaborate in delivering national targets.

It is explicit for the first time that 'there should be a presumption that powers are best exercised at the lowest effective and practical level'.

It spells out key priorities which central and local government will deliver together - this includes tackling anti-social behaviour and crime, delivering good local services, more opportunities for young people, promoting enterprise - and how the two should work together.

It makes clear that central Government has the right to set national policies including minimum standards of services. But central Government also has a responsibility to collaborate with councils and make it easier for them to deliver these priorities at a local level - making a commitment to reduce the burden of appraisal and approval regimes and the ring-fencing of funds for specific purposes as well as ensuring that central guidance is proportionate.

Communities Secretary Hazel Blears said: "Local devolution is no longer a fringe pursuit but now right at the centre of the Government's agenda. The historic shift outlined today will help unleash the potential of local communities, giving them new freedoms in delivering what local people want.

"For local authorities, it promises the progressive removal of obstacles that prevent them from pursuing their role. And for local communities, it provides the springboard for giving local people more power and control over their communities and their own lives."

Notes to Editors

1. The Concordat is available here: http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/localgovernment/centrallocalconcordat

2. The Concordat meets a commitment in the Governance of Britain green paper (July 2007). Paragraph 179 on page 52 states:

'Creating a more participatory democracy requires a healthy representative democracy at local level. It also requires citizens to understand the roles of central and local government, and who can b held responsible for the decisions and services which affect their lives. The performance of local authorities, as measured through the Comprehensive Performance Assessment, has improved greatly in recent years. The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government will now work with the Local Government Association to establish a concordat to govern the relations between central and local government. This will establish for the first time an agreement on the rights and responsibilities of local government, including its responsibilities to provide effective leadership of the local area and to empower local communities where possible.'

3. This commitment was repeated in the Prime Minister's speech to the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) on 3rd September 2007, when he said:

'I want to see a vibrant, reinvigorated local democracy - from neighbourhood level engagement and community calls to action, to a renewed focus on the devolution of powers and responsibilities to local government and the accountability of our local police and health services to their communities.

In this way, people can connect neighbourhood meetings, local ballots and elections, and new forms of community action, with decision-making and the exercise of power over issues they care about in their daily lives.

As part of a new concordat between local and central government Hazel Blears will be working on proposals for the extension of local democracy and decision making in these areas.'

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