Five Foundations of Real Localism

Article

On the eve of the publication of the Localism Bill, this short paper provides five key principles - five foundations - against which the anticipated raft of localist policy measures can be assessed.

As a political slogan, 'localism' would appear to carry weight, but as a policy construct it becomes much harder to articulate and implement. Unless measures within the Bill address each of these foundations in a meaningful and effective manner, any serious attempt to decentralise England is likely to be seriously flawed.

Those five foundations are:

- localism must be effective and efficient

- localism must be properly funded

- localism must sit at the heart of a drive for social justice

- greater devolution of power and responsibility to the local level must be accompanied by a step-change in the transparency and accountability of local decision-making

- the new drive for localism should be framed within a constitutional settlement between central and local government.

Related items

  1. Queen Square Bus Station on Hood Street in Liverpool city centre

    En route to renewal: Delivering better, greener buses

    Good buses drive a strong economy, healthy environment and thriving society. 
  2. Townhouses beside the railway on the viaduct with a running train in Durham, UK

    On track to prosperity: Great Northern Rail

    It’s time the North saw real change for better transport, delivering prosperity and better lives: a long-term plan for Great Northern Rail
  3. Union Jack flag and the Stars and Stripes flag of the USA, fluttering together in front of Big Ben in Westminster

    It's the cost of living, stupid: Why progressives lose and win

    UK households are impatient for change. Trust in our political system is low and that’s reflected in scepticism across the board that government can make things better.