One of the most striking political contrasts of early May was between Presidential elections in France and Local Government elections in England. In France we had M.Hollande elected on a turnout over 80% whilst in England we struggled to achieve 32%. One of the most striking economic policy contrasts is between M.Hollande’s priority to agree a European Growth Pact, and a Queen’s Speech in the UK widely reported as NOT providing the ‘answer to growth’.
Perhaps it is facile to link these contrasts. However, given the publics’ undoubted economic concerns, surely IF local political leaderships were putting forward radical, decisive and credible economic growth propositions, these would be of significant public (electoral?) interest. So, is there now a case for ‘local growth pacts’ (to match M. Hollande’s continental ambitions)? And, if so, what might these look like and how might they be delivered?
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I started my first blog this year on town centres (Portas Pilots…town centres facing their own War of the Worlds) with a reference to Clacton’s 1952 amateur film production of the HG Wells classic. Applications for Portas Pilots include +/-five minute Youtube clips from candidates, as a contemporary equivalent. The Empty Shops Network has posted a stream of (11) ‘Inspirational Portas Pilot pitches’. If government was to use YouTube viewings to determine Portas Pilot designation, then Altrincham, with 4888 views (three times more than the second most popular on ESNs posting) is in with a great chance of the award.
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Now that the dust has settled on the Budget, NPPF and Government’s response to the Portas Town Centre review, we know two things for certain about the future of our High Streets. Firstly, Government gives the appearance of not really understanding (and possibly not really caring about) the impact of what it is doing. Therefore, and secondly, the responsibility for future town centre vitality will depend almost entirely on the vigour and rigour of local leadership teams.
Government’s response to the Portas Review is both extraordinary in its thoughtlessness, brazen in its abdication of responsibility to local teams (and local authorities in particular), and concurrently provides a ‘signature’ exemplar of how they pursue permissive ‘Localism’ (as opposed to the heavily ‘guided’ variant) in practice.
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Will government be transparent about RGF?
On the balance of probabilities, Regional Growth Fund (RGF) is neither a ‘national scandal’ nor ‘the best thing since sliced bread’ – but you would never know this from the information Government has made available about the Programme. The Department for Business Innovation and Skills (DBIS) ‘transparency’ web page starts “BIS is committed to providing the public with information on the performance and productivity of the department”. With applications for £1bn available for RGF Round 3 closing on 13th June, the public, and particularly potential applicants, would benefit from clear, evidenced answers by DBIS to the following ten questions.
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Will LEPs be welcomed through the doors of council planning offices?
With the publication on 27th March 2012 of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) have an important (if modest) formal role in assisting ‘Local Planning Authorities’ (LPAs) to produce Local Plans that can deliver ‘sustainable development’ in their areas. However, they also have a much more significant potential to shape economic growth strategies across their and neighbouring geographies – IF (and this is surely the major challenge for LEPs over the coming period) they can mobilise and deploy strategic intelligence, policy and relationship capabilities to decisively influence the way local authorities actually put the NPPF into practice.
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My last blog questioned ‘What are LEPs for’, and made suggestions about how to organise to deliver different LEP roles and functions. Last week’s budget was somewhat disappointing in helping to clarify these important issues. Government is still (in Vince Cable’s own words) ‘lacking a compelling vision of where the country is heading’, and nowhere is this more evident than in government’s approach to local economic growth.
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The popular nursery rhyme ‘What are little boys made of’ was the
inspiration for The Searchers’ 1963 hit single ‘Sugar and Spice’ (as a response to the question ‘what are little girls made of?’). As Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) finalise their 2012/13 Budgets and Business Plans, I have been asking myself (and those LEP Boards with whom I am working) whether they are now clear ‘what their LEP is for?’ and, therefore, ‘what they need to be made of’ in the coming financial year and beyond.
It is important that LEPs do ask themselves those questions – ideally in that order – because my observation is that we are seeing LEPs take on widely varying roles and functions. These require quite different resourcing, organisation arrangements, and responses/support from local authorities, business and other partners if LEPs are to be effective.
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Need to do more than 'follow the money' to deliver local economic growth...
As we approach a pivotal Budget next month, now is an important moment to consider whether government’s local government finance reforms will really provide the powers and resources to stimulate local economic growth. This analysis can shape the steps local authorities (LAs) and Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) need to take to realise returns from any of these changes.
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Horse and Cart, Clacton War of the Worlds 1952 (EAFA 1990)
When I read Grant Shapps’ announcement (4th February) of a competition to select 12 local pilots to test ‘Town Teams’ recommended by the Portas High Street Review, I googled ‘putting the cart before the horse… town centres’. I am delighted that I did.
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Regeneration and Renewal, and this blog in particular, has previously (November 2011) questioned government’s approach to Regional Growth Fund (RGF) and their claims for its effectiveness and value-for-money. There is virtually no transparency in the process by which applications have been appraised and approved, and scant assurance on the manner in which jobs created/safeguarded and private sector leverage have been calculated.
With bidding for the next round of funding (worth up to £1billion) due to be launched in February, it is now an appropriate moment to return to government to demand a transparency and accountability for RGF decision-taking and implementation that matches their rhetoric and purported values.
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One of the most striking political contrasts of early May was between Presidential elections in France and Local Government elections in England. In France we had M.Hollande elected on a turnout over 80% whilst in England we struggled to achieve 32%. One of the most striking economic policy contrasts is between M.Hollande’s priority to agree a European Growth Pact, and a Queen’s Speech in the UK widely reported as NOT providing the ‘answer to growth’.
