Ministers need to know their place

It's time for a major phased reform of the way local and central government bodies work together, with a need for a "mutual and equal partnership of trust and collaboration" if the duplications identified in the Total Place programme are to be tackled. That's the conclusion of a report out today from the New Local Government Network (NLGN), written with the Leadership Centre and London Councils. The aim of the project was to look beyond cost and efficiency savings to see what impact Total Place could have on reforming the way public services are delivered. It concludes that ministers should keep out of local affairs - "devolve and refrain from intervention in local issues" - and that the government should "demonstrate realism about the financial savings" that may come from Total Place. The report also proposes a new government "superdepartment" for devolved government, to replace the existing Department of Communities and Local Government, as well as the Cabinet Office, Scotland and Wales Offices, and the constitutional elements of the Ministry for Justice and the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit. Such a department would, says the NLGN, have one clear and overriding goal: to move all relevant powers on service delivery and improvement from Whitehall to localities. It is no surprise that the NLGN should back such a stand on devolvement of power to local places. But the report does take on board the need for a more co-ordinated approach to funding and shared objective; hence the call for partnership between Whitehall and local government. It says this is already happening in some parts of government and cites the approach to worklessness and skills where, it says, local places can co-ordinate activity more coherently. Karl Eddy, head of government and infrastructure advisory at Grant Thornton, which co-sponsored the report, said it shows that vertical interests within public services have resulted in significant duplication and waste. He said the report supports what those involved in Total Place already know, but added that the concepts underpinning Total Place will require strong leadership at all levels if they are to be implemented.