The document summarizes the results of a survey of local government practitioners on democratic oversight of public services. For most services, respondents felt there should be some level of democratic oversight. However, a significant minority felt services like car parks, cemeteries, and libraries did not require oversight. There was no consensus on the appropriate level of oversight for many services, with support split between local, regional and national control. The survey suggests new models of localism may involve both decentralizing some services to local control while centralizing others under national oversight.
2. About the survey
These slides summarise the
results of a survey which sought
the views of local government
practitioners on two questions:
● Are there some public
services which don't warrant
democratic oversight?
● Where democratic oversight
is needed, is it best carried
out at a local, regional or
national level?
3. Pinning down 'localism'
There is a growing political
consensus that localism is the
way forward.
Localism must mean that some
services which are currently
subject to national democratic
accountability should switch to
being the responsibility of locally
elected representatives.
But the survey also sought
views on whether there are
some functions that could go the
other way, or where there is no
need for politicians to have
oversight.
4. Facts and figures
● 43 respondents
● Most respondents were local
government officers
● But also respondents from
think tanks, consultancies
and third sector
organisations
● Responses received during
October 2009
● Resondents were asked to
give their views on 41
services
5. The services included in the survey
● Building control ● Housing strategy ● Schools
● Car parks ● Job Centre Plus services (e.g. training and ● Strategic planning (e.g. Local
support for the unemployed) Development Framework)
● Care and protection of children
● Leisure services ● Tourism
● Care for elderly people
● Libraries and archives ● Trading standards, consumer
● Care for people with a disability protection
● Licensing
● Cemeteries ● Transport planning
● Local economy support and development
● Community safety ● Waste disposal
● Museums and arts
● Council tax benefit ● Youth services
● Policing
● Council tax collection
● Post offices
● Countryside management
● Prisons
● Development control (planning)
● Public and community transport
● Electoral registration
● Recycling
● Emergency planning
● Regional Development Agency functions (e.g.
● Environmental health promoting business, regeneration etc)
● Further education ● registration of births, deaths, marriages
● Housing Provision ● School transport
6. What should we stop doing?
● Given the spending squeeze
are there some functions that
the state could stop carrying
out altogether?
● Respondents were asked to
choose from a long list of
public services which ones
they thought didn't warrant
democratic over-sight.
7. For every service a majority of respondents
felt politicians should carry on having a role
But while almost all
respondents felt
democratic oversight of
some functions was
necessary, there were
others where a
significant minority
disagreed.
8. Democratic oversight of some administrative and
regulatory functions is seen as less important
60
% of respondents saying these functions should not have democratic oversight at any level
50
40
30
20
10
0
registration housing benefit museums and arts emergency planning
electoral registration car parks cemeteries council tax colleciton trading standards
9. There was very strong support for democratic oversight of social
care, community safety, schools, housing and planning
% of respondents favouring democratic oversight at some level
100
98
96
94
92
90
88
86
community safety housing strategy schools primary health
child protection care for vulnerable people economic development public transport housing provision
10. The second part of the survey asked respondents
to say for those services where they thought
democratic oversight was appropriate, whether it
should be at:
● Local council level
● Regional authority level
● National level
11. Respondents don't see a role for national
politicians on planning and libraries
There were five functions
where respondents were
unanimous there should be
no role for Whitehall:
● Car parks
● Cemeteries
● Development control
● Libraries
● Strategic planning
12. And for each of these services only one
respondent thought democratic oversight
should be at a national level
● Building control
● Leisure services
● Licensing
● Regional Development
● School transport
13. But there are also seven local government services
where many respondents favour a transfer to Whitehall
60
% of respondents favouring democratic oversight at a national level
50
40
30
20
10
0
child protection council tax collection registration
electoral registration care for vulnerable people trading standards housing benefits
14. There's no appetite to make prisons nor further education
locally accountable but most respondents favour a transfer
90
on post offices, primary health and policing.
% of respondents favouring democratic oversight at a national level
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
prisons further education post offices primary health care policing
15. Respondents favour regional democratic oversight for seven
services – including some currently done by councils
% respondents favour regional oversight
80
70
60
50
40
I
30
20
10
0
RDA functions tourism public transport emergency planning countryside mgt waste disposal Job Centre Plus
16. The 'premier league' of locally accountable services – these
are the services with the highest rating for council control...
% respondents favour local oversight
96
94
92
90
88
I
86
84
82
80
youth services licensing car parks school transport libraries cemeteries leisure services building control
17. .. but are these the services we most prize?
● Some of these services were amongst those that
significant numbers of respondents felt didn't warrant any
democratic oversight.
● Other services are discretionary such as leisure and
libraries which probably re-inforces a view that there is no
need for democratic oversight outside of the local authority
18. There are eight services where a majority favoured local accountability but
a significant number of respondents favoured Whitehall
% respondents favour local (red) or national (green) oversight
70
60
50
40
30
I
20
10
0
child protection primary care council tax benefit registration
electoral reg care of vulnerable people trading standards post offices
19. There are also mixed views about recycling and waste disposal
● Only 53% of respondents feel
council oversight of recycling
is appropriate, with 27%
feeling this could be done
regionally and 20% nationally.
● 45% of respondents favour
regional democratic oversight
of waste disposal (compared
to 41% for council
accountability)
20. The survey suggests a more complex
picture of 'new localism'
It may be that new localism isn't simply about devolving
responsibilities for policing and primary health to
councils. Some administrative functions could go the
other way to free-up councils to focus more on local
governance.
And the survey suggests that in the context of reduced
resources we should be thinking fundamentally about
what we do. Are there some services which we can stop
doing?
21. Decentralisation and centralisation
The survey suggests that even within local government
there remains a belief that national political oversight of
social care is appropriate.
So it may be less about double devolution than
simultaneous devolution and centralisation of specific
functions.
Is this why we don't seem to reach the magical tipping
point in the debate about central/local relations?
