Political pundits often translate local election results directly into how political parties are doing on national issues. This is fair enough. On the doorstep I have heard several voters bring up the Windrush scandal and Brexit. But I also had questions on street cleaning, youth services and safety. I found it hardest to respond to these: spending cuts mean that local councils are in an ever-tightening straitjacket.
Having failed to make significant gains in the local elections, Labour now needs to bolster its position by demonstrating it can do the job at the local level. As the shadow chancellor, John McDonnell, suggested earlier in the year, Labour cannot afford to wait until it is in power nationally, and needs to translate the principles behind its popular 2017 general election manifesto into concrete policies at the local level.
Local authority budgets have been cut by nearly 50% in real terms since 2010 and will be further reduced. In the endless political shenanigans of recent weeks, this striking statistic has been largely missing from the political discourse. Libraries, community officers, social care and many more aspects of local infrastructure have been in dramatic decline and people have noticed. Contrary to George Osborne’s assertion that the broadest shoulders would bear the biggest burden of austerity, it has been the poorest areas that have suffered the biggest cuts.
In the midst of councils going bust, many people – including the majority of Conservative voters – are questioning public spending cuts. While stories of local authorities running out of money and growing crises in local services will undoubtedly increase the numbers of those wanting to see the end of austerity, newly elected councillors will be keen to make the best of a bad hand. So how can local councils make a difference? There are three obvious areas: housing, insourcing public provision, and generating local prosperity through local procurement.
The recent controversy over the Haringey development vehicle has shown that London local authorities in particular will need to come up with new ideas on housing. Minimal provision for social tenants or “affordable” housing that is actually not affordable for the majority faces a growing backlash. As well as new ideas, we need a better process of community engagement. Ultimately, local authorities need to be able to borrow to build, but in the meantime they need to stand firm when negotiating with private developers. Otherwise we will end up seeing many more council leaders having to step down.
Local authorities must also take urgent action over flammable cladding on tower blocks. Since the Grenfell Tower fire, surprisingly little has been done and councils cannot afford to delay. Rogue landlords and flats left empty by the global super-rich using UK housing as a piggy bank will be easier targets.
The tide is also turning on market-focused provision at the local level. In the wake of the liquidation of Carillion, the reputation of outsourcing has plummeted even further. A Survation poll commissioned by the GMB trade union in March found that half of the population think public services that have been outsourced to the private sector should be brought back into public ownership. Oxfordshire planned to bring services back in-house even before the Carillion collapse, citing poor performance, and even Conservative councils have reversed their approach. Unison research found that the advantages of insourcing as ranked by local authority officers were greater flexibility, increased efficiency and reducing costs and time associated with contract monitoring.
The celebrated model of procurement used by Preston city council – which has used the city’s institutions and local government contracts to keep money in the local economy – is certainly an approach more councils should consider. Preston has provided a £200m boast to the local economy, supporting more than 1,600 jobs.
Of course local authorities should continue to shout loud about the impacts of the cuts, but ultimately nothing can make up for the lack of investment in social care and the many other services provided at a local level. Many administrations will be forced to increase council taxes as a consequence. However, innovative projects such as the not-for-profit Robin Hood Energy company set up by Nottingham city council demonstrate that councils are doing everything they can to ease hardship. There is another important aspect to testing ideas at the grassroots level – Labour has the chance to demonstrate that an alternative approach can work. While we await the next general election, the revolution will be localised.
- Faiza Shaheen is the director of the Centre for Labour and Social Studies
