Local goverment structure Flashcards
When did the two tier local authorities come in?
1972 enacted 1974
what are county councils responsible for?
- Education
- Social services (e.g. child protection and care for the elderly)
- Transport
- Libraries and museums
- Waste disposal
- Strategic, county-wide planning (mainly waste disposal and mineral extraction
district or borough councils are responsible for:
- Housing
- Refuse collection
- Planning (housing estates, house extensions, new supermarkets etc.)
- Collection of council tax and uniform business rates (UBR)
- Environmental health (inspection of food premises etc.)
What is the hybrid structure?
During the 1990s other smaller cities were encouraged to adopt unitary status and many did, for example York, Bristol, Derby and Nottingham. Where unitary authorities exist alongside two-tier authorities (for example York is a unitary authority working alongside North Yorkshire county council, which is a two-tier authority) this is known as hybrid structure.
What are Parish councils?
- Sometimes called a town council
- They are nothing to do with ecclesiastical parishes
- They raise money by the parish precept on council taxes
- They are responsible for playground equipment, public toilets, park benches, streetlights, footpaths etc.
- They have a right to be consulted over major planning applications
What is London’s local government structure?
- It has a directly elected Mayor (currently Sadiq Khan)
- And 25 directly elected members of the London Assembly
- Together the Mayor and the London Assembly form the Greater London Authority responsible for policing, transport, fire and rescue services and the congestion charge
- Below this structure sit 32 borough councils (plus the City of London Corporation) which act as unitary authorities providing services such as education, refuse collection, social services, housing and planning
what are the differences between councillors and officers?
- Officers are the paid civil service of the local authority and should be politically neutral.
- Councillors (sometimes called members) are political figures required to stand for election every four years.
- Councillors decide on policy and officers implement that policy.
- The Leader of the Council is an elected councillor who is the head of the governing party
- The Chief Executive is the senior officer who leads the entire “paid service”
- Each department also has a lead councillor and a senior officer at its head
- Councillors are unpaid but can claim a Basic Allowance plus a Special Responsibility Allowance if they take on extra duties
what is the committee system?
Old Style’ Committee System – this consists of a number of committees and sub committees of elected councillors covering each main area of policy. Policy proposals are considered by the committee and then, if approved, passed to a meeting of all the councillors – the Full Council – for final approval
What is the leader and cabinet system?
New Style’ Leader and Cabinet System – introduced under the Local Government Act of 2000 this consists of the Leader of the Council or Directly Elected Mayor who chooses councillors to sit in the Cabinet and act as an executive, often taking decisions without consulting the majority of councillors. Scrutiny Committees can make comments and suggest amendments, but the Full Council only approves key decisions – that is those incurring significant expenditure
• Pros – Is said to be quicker and more efficient and bypasses the cumbersome committee system
• Cons – Some say it is less democratic and creates two classes of councillor – those in the Cabinet who have executive power and those who are effectively ‘backbenchers’ who have little power or say.
Directly elected mayors?
- The Local Government Act 2000 introduced the idea of Directly Elected Mayors (DEM)
- These are powerful, executive style positions and shouldn’t be confused with Lord Mayors and other ceremonial mayors who raise money for charity and attend civil functions but who have little real power
- In 2012 nine cities, including Sheffield, rejected the chance to have a DEM in a referendum. Doncaster voted to retain its DEM
What is the localism act of 2011?
- The Localism Act 2011 sets out a series of measures designed to shift power away from central government and towards local people. The Act gives new freedoms and powers for local government, communities and individuals. It includes a reform of planning system to make it more democratic and effective.
- The Act establishes a ‘general power of competence’ for all local authorities, including parish, district, county and unitary authorities. This means that instead of being able to act only where the law says they can, local authorities are free to do anything an individual can do - provided they do not break other laws.
- The idea is to cut red tape and encourage more entrepreneurial thinking. The Act, for example, encourages councils to work together to drive down costs and do innovative things to meet local people’s needs.
Whats the northern powerhouse?
- In 2014 the government proposed the Northern Powerhouse to boost economic growth in the north of England championed by the Chancellor George Osborne (MP for Tatton in Cheshire)
- Greater Manchester the first area to get extra powers over housing, transport, planning, policing and some health spending
- In October 2015 the Sheffield City Region Combined Authority became the second area to sign an agreement with George Osborne.
- http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-south-yorkshire-34414584
- It consists of nine local authority areas – Sheffield, Rotherham, Doncaster, Barnsley, Bolsover, Bassetlaw, Chesterfield, Derbyshire Dales and NE Derbyshire.
- Would get extra powers over transport and strategic planning
- Would get £30 extra a year for 30 years = £900m
- The Sheffield City Region was supposed to have elections for a mayor in May 2017
- But this timetable was derailed in December 2016 when Derbyshire County Council won a High Court battle. The court ruled residents in Chesterfield had not been consulted properly on the Sheffield City Region plan.
- Election scheduled for May 2018 – but a rival devolution plan known as One Yorkshire is gaining momentum
- Barnsley and Doncaster voted for One Yorkshire in December 2017 mini referenda.
- For more information see crib sheet on devolution.
how does sheffield city council work?
- Is a unitary authority
- Operates under a leader and cabinet style of governance (Leader is Councillor Julie Dore)
- The city is divided into 28 geographical areas called “wards”
- Each ward is represented by three councillors – 84 in total
- For an overall majority a political group requires 84/2 plus one = 43
- Labour has 53 councillors, Lib Dems 22 and Greens 6, Ukip 3 (March 2019)
- Term of office is four years
- One third of councillors come up for election each year and the fourth year is a “fallow year” without elections to the city council
- The City Council’s website has details of councillors, contact numbers (including mobile phones), details of meetings, minutes, membership of committees, details of councillors expenses, the register of councillor’s interests and lots more!
- https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/home/your-city-council/elected-representatives.html Election timetable for all authorities in England - https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/487034/Electoral_cycles_-_from_May_2016.pdf
The police?
- The police service is a national service operating under the auspices of the Home Secretary.
- Until 2012 local democratic oversight was provided by Police Authorities, consisting of councillors who had been elected to local authorities covered by the police force, plus magistrates and local business leaders. For example councillors from Sheffield, Barnsley, Rotherham and Doncaster sat on the South Yorkshire Police Authority overseeing the work of South Yorkshire Police.
- In November 2012 Police Authorities were replaced by directly elected Police and Crime Commissioners (PCC), who can appoint and dismiss chief constables, direct local policing priorities through a five year police plan and ensure value for money. They are elected for a four-year term.
- The PCCs are in turn scrutinised by Police and Crime Panels, consisting of local councillors, who can veto the PCC proposals for the police precept and the appointment of chief constables.
- The Independent Police Complaints Commission handles serious complaints (for example deaths in custody or at the hands of police officers)
- The PCC is funded by a precept on the council tax
Fire and rescue services?
- In many areas Combined Fire Authorities have been formed to provide democratic oversight of the fire service
- South Yorkshire Fire Authority for example oversees the South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service
- Councillors from the constituent authorities sit on the Fire Authority – for example councillors from Sheffield, Barnsley, Rotherham and Doncaster
- The Fire Authority is funded by a precept on the council tax
