Regional development agencies and the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Bill - Business and Enterprise Committee Contents


Memorandum submitted by Ashford Borough Council, Kent

PROSPEROUS PLACES: TAKING FORWARD THE REVIEW OF SUB NATIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND REGENERATION

  I am writing to convey Ashford Borough Council's formal response to the above consultation document, as approved by the Borough Council's Executive Committee meeting on 29 May.

  In the circumstances, the Council does not wish to respond in detail to the specific questions posed in the document.

  The Council would, however, like to take this opportunity to register its fundamental objection to the whole thrust of the Review of Sub National Economic Development and Regeneration (SNR), as clarified by the consultation document.

  Major regional planning decisions go the heart of the "place shaping" agenda. They have a major impact on individuals and communities throughout the region in question and they can have major (both positive and negative) impacts on land and property values. Ashford Borough Council takes the view that such decisions should therefore be approached in a carefully considered way that balances all the interests that arise; that they should follow a comprehensive, inclusive process that involves extensive consultation and community engagement; and that they should incorporate a high degree of local political accountability. The present arrangements, under which Local Planning Authorities have at least a degree of influence on regional planning matters via their membership of the Regional Assemblies, may not be perfect but it does provide some indirect local political accountability and that has helped to ensure a reasonably rounded approach to the development of Regional Spatial Strategies.

  Local authorities are directly representative of the communities they serve and, particularly through the exercise of their responsibilities for plan making and development control, they have a key role in "shaping" the places that those communities inhabit. The exercise of those responsibilities needs to take place within a robust and well-founded regional planning context, in which all stakeholders can have confidence. The decision incorporated in the SNR to abolish Regional Assemblies and place regional planning decisions in the hands of unelected quangos represents an unacceptable diminution in the role and influence of local government on decisions that will have profound effects on their communities.

  The consultation document also makes clear the Government's intention to ensure that the new arrangements should be highly responsive to central Government guidance. This represents an inappropriate and unwelcome centralisation of important powers, which runs counter to the government's professed commitment to "localism" and the empowerment of local government. Our concern on this front is reinforced by the fact that the abolition of the Regional Assemblies will result in a very significant reduction in the level and effectiveness of scrutiny of the Regional Development Agencies: we do not regard the scrutiny proposals in the consultation document as being likely to compensate adequately for this.

  It is also clear from the consultation document that the process of drawing up or reviewing regional strategies will be truncated and altered in ways that will represent a significant move away from the consultative, inclusive and bottom up approach that has traditionally been taken. This will weaken the ability of communities and stakeholders to influence these important strategies.

  At the time of the publication of the SNR it was said that it would offer a new and powerful role for local authorities in shaping and delivering economic development and regeneration in their areas. The reality, as expressed in the consultation document, falls far short of that. The consultation document says that the Regional Development Agencies will continue to be "business led", with no mention of any seats for representatives of local government on the RDA boards. The duty to prepare a "local economic assessment" could be a useful step forward (even though the majority of Local Planning Authorities are excluded from the new duty) but the most that is said of the local economic assessments is that they will "inform" the integrated Regional Strategies. The proposed Regional Leaders' Forums are to be given a role in developing and "signing off" the integrated Regional Strategies, but there is no "dual key" decision mechanism and no power of veto for the Regional Leaders' Forums so they seem likely to be toothless.

  There is also the practical problem of developing a model for a Regional Leaders' Forum that would be both small enough to be "manageable" and "able to engage effectively with the RDA" whilst simultaneously being "representative" and having "sufficient authority" to take strategy decisions and agree priorities on behalf of all local authorities in the region. This will be a particular problem in the South East, with 74 very different local authorities covering a wide range of economic and social experiences. Ashford Borough Council is concerned that the legitimate interests of local authorities in general will not be adequately represented through any such mechanism, leaving aside the fact that the proposed Regional Leaders' Forums appear to have very little real power in any event.

  For all these reasons, Ashford Borough Council objects strongly to the underlying propositions that have emerged from the SNR. We believe that those propositions should themselves be consulted upon before any further attention is paid to the detail of how they should be implemented. In particular, we feel strongly that any new arrangements for regional planning following the abolition of the Regional Assemblies should provide full opportunities for all democratically elected bodies in the region to examine, influence, scrutinise and if necessary call in the recommendations of the RDAs.

  The Council also challenges the government's apparent intention—reflected in the consultation document—to implement many of the fundamental changes proposed in the SNR without waiting for necessary primary legislation to be debated—or even drafted. That is an abuse of power.

  Ashford is of course one of the designated Growth Areas in the South East under the Sustainable Communities Plan. Ashford Borough Council has proactively worked with partners to deliver housing growth and economic development—to the benefit of our community. The Council has consistently voted by very large majorities to support the growth plans for the Ashford urban area. So the Council's objection to the SNR does not reflect any opposition to housing growth and economic development per se. The Council remains totally committed to the principles of community engagement, widespread consultation and local democratic accountability and it takes the view that the proposals in the SNR as elaborated by the consultation document do not reflect those principles.

19 September 2008






 
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