LGA set out proposals on local government budgets and powers ahead of the Budget

The Local Government Association have issued the statement below which makes interesting reading in the light of discussion about how communities should resist local government cuts..

 

Councils could boost housebuilding, increase the number of school places and reduce unemployment if they are handed extra powers to run local services in this week’s Budget, town hall leaders say today.

The Local Government Association has set out a range of proposals for the Chancellor to consider as part of the Budget which would not only improve people’s lives and protect the local services valued by residents but would also deliver sustainable savings to the public purse.

The Chancellor has recently suggested further public sector spending cuts might be needed towards the end of the decade to combat slower than expected economic growth and to meet the Government’s manifesto pledge to achieve a surplus by 2020.

More than half of all day-to-day departmental spending by government – health, schools, defence and overseas aid – is currently protected. If this continues, other unprotected areas – including local government – could be hit once again as a result, the LGA said.

Councils face significant reductions to government grants over the next four years. Local government leaders are also warning George Osborne not to exacerbate these funding challenges by deepening planned cuts as part of his Budget this week.

Council funding cuts in recent years have had a knock-on effect on other parts of the public sector, such as the NHS, which are being left to pick up the pieces leading to a number of false economies. As a result, the LGA insists that ring-fencing certain budgets no longer makes any sense and could put the very services being protected at risk.

Lord Porter, LGA Chairman, said:

“Councils have more than played their part in trying to balance the nation’s books in recent years and all councils will have to continue to find substantial savings from local services to plug funding gaps over the next four years. Extra council tax powers and transitional funding will help some but won’t be enough to completely offset the full impact of funding pressures.

“Giving councils the option to fix longer-term funding settlements has been an important step and rightly recognised by government as being essential to give councils the financial certainty they need to protect local services. It would be perverse to then undermine this with further cuts handed down just one month later.

“Cutting local government to prop up other departments is a false economy. The Government should carefully consider the effect council funding cuts have on other parts of the public sector and whether to tear down the ring-fence around health and education spending.

“Pumping money into the NHS while councils receive less social care and public health funding is a false economy. A properly funded social care system is essential to alleviate the pressure on the NHS while schools and councils also need to be able to pool resources to ensure children are school ready, reduce drop-out rates and improve children’s physical and mental health.

“The Government should use our submission as the blueprint for empowering local government to play a leading role in balancing the nation’s books while improving public services and local economies.”

Carolyn Downs to be new Brent Council Chief Executive

Official Brent Council Press release

Carolyn Downs has been announced as the new chief executive of Brent Council.

Chief executive of the Local Government Association since November 2011, Carolyn will bring a wealth of experience to Brent.

Prior to her appointment at the Local Government Association, Carolyn was chief executive of the Legal Services Commission, where her role was to drive performance and secure a stronger financial future.

Carolyn was also previously deputy permanent secretary and director general of corporate performance at the Ministry of Justice. She was responsible for all corporate services, including finance, estates, personnel, risk management, business planning and communications.

From 2003 to 2009, Carolyn was Chief Executive of Shropshire County Council, where she was responsible for a budget of £500 million a year and a staff of 12,000.

Cllr Muhammed Butt, Leader of Brent Council, said:

"I am delighted that after a rigorous and competitive recruitment process, we are able to offer the role of chief executive at Brent Council to Carolyn Downs.

"Carolyn was the outstanding candidate in what was a highly competitive recruitment process, and I am confident that she will bring with her a wealth of public sector experience and enthusiasm to Brent, at a time when this council and local authorities everywhere face such unprecedented challenges.

"I have no doubt at all that with Carolyn's passion for and experience in local government and her drive to succeed, that we have appointed the right person to help navigate the borough through the challenging times ahead and help make Brent a better borough."

Christine Gilbert, the current chief executive at Brent Council, said:

"I would like to congratulate Carolyn on her appointment, her experience and skills will be a huge asset to Brent.

"It has been a great privilege to have served as the chief executive for Brent Council. Brent is a wonderful place and I know Carolyn will be warmly welcomed both inside and outside the civic centre.

"I wish her every success in her new role."

Carolyn will take up the role later in the year, once her appointment has been ratified at a full council meeting on 22 June 2015.

End of Press Release

Further information about Carolyn Downs from the LGA

Carolyn Downs has been Chief Executive of the LGA since November 2011.

Before this she was chief executive of the Legal Services Commission where her role was to drive performance and secure a stronger financial future.

She was also previously deputy permanent secretary and director general of corporate performance at the Ministry of Justice. She was responsible for all corporate services, including finance, estates, personnel, risk management, business planning and communications.

From 2003 to 2009, Carolyn was Chief Executive of Shropshire County Council, where she was responsible for a budget of £500 million a year and a staff of 12,000.

Carolyn had worked for the same council as director of environment and community services since 1999 and before this, worked for a range of other councils including Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council, Stevenage Borough Council, the London Borough of Haringey, and Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council where she started her working life as a library assistant.

So no connection with Tower Hamlets or Ofsted, just shared intials with the head of Brent HR.

Cross party letter on council cuts a beginning but we must challenge austerity

Following my posts on this blog about the budget crisis faced by local councils, including Brent and Brighton, it is good to see this cross-party letter in the Observer today signed by leaders of many local councils as well as the Chair of the Local Government Association LINK

Of course a letter on its own won't solve the problem and it is not just a matter of more control of funding but also the total amount. Austerity, which led to the cuts, is supported by the main political parties represented in this letter.

Local anti cuts campaigns, trades councils and trade unions, tenants associations and other citizen groups need to step up their campaigning against what amounts to the destruction of local services under the cover of austerity.

The Observer Letter 

Funding for services provided by councils has borne the brunt of austerity while demand continues to rise. When the chancellor delivers his autumn statement this Wednesday, “more of the same” cannot be an option.

After a 40% reduction in funding during this parliament, our efficiency savings are coming to an end. Further reductions without radical reform will have a detrimental impact on people’s quality of life and will lead to vital services being scaled back or lost altogether. Services such as libraries, leisure centres and road maintenance continue to buckle under the strain of cuts and the ever-rising cost of caring for our growing elderly population. Failure to address this will not only jeopardise other services, but will pass costs on to the NHS, which will have to pick up the pieces if we cannot protect adult social care or provide the services that keep people healthy.

Last week, the Smith commission set out a better deal for Scotland, granting more control over funding and recognising the importance of devolving power down beyond Holyrood. It’s England’s turn now.

There is compelling evidence that taking decisions closer to the people affected achieves better results and saves money. It is vital that the autumn statement sets out a new settlement for England, which puts powers beyond Westminster, and shares out tax and spending across the UK on a fair basis. The people we represent, who look north of the border with envy at the greater control Scots are to get over their everyday lives, will expect nothing less.