Fundamental flaws in the accountability of Local Government Councillors do not appear to be addressed in the new White Paper claiming to provide a New vision for Local Government.
To quote Directgov
Communities Secretary Ruth Kelly published new proposals significantly strengthening leadership and devolving power to local government as well as providing a major expansion of opportunities for local people to influence local decision-making and improve their lives.
Under Proposals of the White Paper
Effective, accountable and responsive Local Government
Local Government will be more accountable by:
* giving overview and scrutiny committees of councils new powers to review the actions of key public bodies and require the Council executive and other public bodies to respond
* requiring councils to publicise overview and scrutiny recommendations and the responses to those recommendations
* providing a short window of opportunity and invitation for a small number of councils keen to seek unitary status (subject to criteria), and pushing for better joint working for all two-tier areas
* reforming the current Standards Board and implementing a more locally-based conduct regime
Clearly the opportunity for ‘local people to influence local decision-making and improve their lives’, according to Directgov means local Councillors having more power.
Ordinary people who have tried to debate local issues sensibly with local councillors and have been confronted by a wall of uncommunicative silence and obfuscation may well question whether genuine benefits will be achieved. They may even hold their heads in their hands and wonder which planet the authors of the White Paper are on.
The new powers of the Internet open possibilities for elected representatives to be accountable in ways that were never historically possible. Some may have embraced these opportunities, many haven’t.
In the UK, as elsewhere in other democratic countries, we desperately need national and local decisions to be taken on the basis of hard facts and solid argument. Our societies are too complex for cliques, elected or not, to understand the full unforseen consequences of laws or administrative actions.
The present government consultation processes only seems to allow a flow of comment from people to government. There is no interplay of debate. In short, there is no way that ordinary people who have contributed opinion or information in a consultation exercise to confirm their views have been taken into account and how they were accepted or discounted.
The need for a democratic audit trail is vital if we are to have rational, informed and believable decisions taken that the public will support.
UK Parliament must pass a law forthewith setting up a framework of interactive public consultation that requires local Councillors to debate local policy publicly on officially designated Internet forums and also requiring local Councillors to give responses and reasons for their actions and decisions following a request by a member of the public.
This is the only way to provide a genuine and believable democratic audit trail for policy consultation.
In my experience, letters and emails about issues of policy are currently quite simply ignored by Councillors. This occurs whether the sender is an ordinary member of the public or a prominent local business leader. Such behavior is surely irrational and totally unacceptable.
Open transparent public debate on issues will also enable the electorate to accurately assess the quality of elected representatives.
Perhaps then, those of us who have attended local Council meetings as members of the public and have been appalled at the standard of debate displayed by their elected representatives would have some hope of progress and better decisions.
0 Response to “Democratic Flaws in New vision for UK Local Government unveiled in White Paper”