How will localism affect Transport infrastructure?
One of the central elements of the Coalition's programme for government is localism. Localism is a move away from the current ‘top down’ style of government to a ‘bottom up’ system where local councils and communities play a more active role. The Localism Bill was introduced to Parliament on 13 December 2010 and received Royal Assent on 15 November 2011.
The intention of the bill is to initiate a shift in the balance of power and to decentralise power as far as possible, and push power downwards and outwards to the lowest possible level, including individuals, neighbourhoods, professionals and communities as well as local councils and other local institutions.
The Localism Bill includes five key measures that underpin the Government's approach to decentralisation.
- Community rights
- Neighbourhood planning
- Housing
- General power of competence
- Empowering cities and other local areas
This could present some challenges to the civil engineering community in how delivery of services takes place. To provide further information on the changes that the Localism Bill will enact, the Department of Communities and Local Government have produced a Plain English Guide to the Localism Act. This guide describes the main measures of the Localism Act under four headings:
- New freedoms and flexibilities for local government
- New rights and powers for communities and individuals
- Reform to make the planning system more democratic and more effective
- Reform to ensure that decisions about housing are taken locally
This document is designed to give an overview only. You can read the Act and its explanatory notes in full, on the parliament website at the address below: http://services.parliament.uk/Acts/2010-11/localism.html. The document Decentralisation and the Localism Act: an essential guide also gives further background. It explains how the principles that underpin the Localism Act also inform other government policies: http://www.communities.gov.uk/decentralisationguide
Activity undertaken by the Institution of Civil Engineers' to establish its' policy on the view on Localism and Decentralisation Bill.
The Localism Bill received Royal Assent in mid-November 2011, becoming the Localism Act. It has important implications for infrastructure, and ICE worked hard over the past year to improve the Bill.
Please see the Municipal engineering section for more information