Appendix: Illustrative draft code for
central and local government
Illustrative draft code for central and local
government—a basis for further discussion[101]
Preamble (Optional)
We the citizens and the Government of the United
Kingdom recognise all elected councils in England as free and
independent bodies, separate and equal partners in the governance
of this realm under Her Majesty, accountable to local people.
Parliament asserts that democratically elected councils have a
range of rights, freedoms and duties to secure and improve the
well-being of their citizens and communities. Parliament states
that elected councils have the right to carry out those duties
as they judge best on any matter which is not reserved under law
to the competence of some other authority, subject always to the
judgment of the courts and the ultimate approval of their electors.
Parliament makes plain that elected councils have equal status
to elected central government and that their rights and duties
shall enjoy equal protection in law.
Article One:
1. The fundamental rights, freedoms and duties
of councils herein are defined protected and entrenched. They
may not be compromised or changed other than by the explicit consent
of Parliament as authorised firstly by an elected joint committee
of both Houses, and then by the approval of both Houses of Parliament
as prescribed in the amendment to the 1911 Parliament Act.
2. This code embodies an agreement between central
government and local councils. Councils, local government representative
bodies, all ministers, government departments, MPs, civil servants,
courts of law and all public agencies interacting with local government
are bound by the articles within this agreement and will act in
accordance with these articles.
3. The individual rights of citizens are not
affected by this code and citizens may seek judicial review against
any injustice or infringement of rights as now. Councils and government
can seek legal adjudication should it be felt that a council,
councils or central government are not acting in accordance with
the code.
Article Two: Local Autonomy and Local Self-Government
1. Councils' accountability is to local citizens.
2. Councils shall operate within the rule of
law and with regard and respect to human rights legislation.
3. Councils are autonomous, democratically elected
bodies which independently decide upon, administer and regulate
the public affairs of and deal with all matters of concern within
their boundaries which are not dealt with or attended to by other
governmental bodies under law.
4. Councils operate within a framework of an
irrevocable general power of competence with a full legal personality.
Subject to the preamble to this code and to paragraph 3 of this
Article powers rest with councils, acting in accordance with the
national legal framework, to pass local measures on matters affecting
the affairs and interests of their area.
Article Three: Scope of Local Government
1. The powers and responsibilities of councils
may not be prescribed other than by statute subject to safeguards
in Article 1.1.
2. Councils have, in addition to existing powers,
full discretion to exercise their initiative with regard to any
matter which is not excluded from their competence or assigned
to any other authority or body.
3. Councils are to be consulted, early within
the policy and decision-making processes, by the Government if
it is proposing actions which will affect any council and its
communities.
Article Four: Inter-Governmental Activities
1. Central and local government acting jointly
shall be allowed to create inspection regimes to set and maintain
service standards.
Article Five: Territorial Autonomy
1. The geographical boundary of a council can
only be altered by a proposal from the council itself or from
local citizens and not by any action of central government. Any
locally inspired proposal for boundary changes must be constructed
with the involvement of the Local Government Boundary Commission
for England and within the law and subject to local approval in
the area concerned.
Article Six: Council Governmental Systems
1. Local citizens through methods agreed by their
councils shall have autonomy to choose their internal political
decision-making systems (including,-the right to adopt a directly
elected mayor and cabinet, cabinet and leader, or a committee
system, or any other political decision-making arrangement). Local
citizens through methods agreed by their councils can adopt any
electoral system for use in council elections, after consultation
and approval by local citizens.
Article Seven: Local Government Financial Integrity
1. Councils shall be financially independent
of central government. Equalisation arrangements will continue
as now. Equalisation will be conducted through a process independent
of central government and continue to be based on the principle
of ensuring fairness and balance between councils.
2. Councils may raise additional sources of income
in their localities in any way they wish [subject to the rule
of law and human rights legislation] if they gain the consent
of their electorates.
3. Local government shall have a guaranteed share
of the annual yield of income tax. This share shall be renegotiated
whenever service provision responsibilities are transferred between
central and local government.
4. Councils shall be able to raise any loans,
bonds or other financial instruments which their credit rating
allows and will be exclusively responsible for repayment. All
councils shall operate "a balanced budget" so that all
outgoings, including interest repayments on borrowings, shall
not exceed income.
5. Central government may not cap, or in any
way limit, council's taxation powers. Central and local government
may contract with each other to pursue their own policy objectives.
6. The same financial transparency standards
will apply to local and central government, alike.
Article Eight: Councils' Right and Duty to Co-operate
and Associate
1. Councils as independent legal entities are
entitled, in any undertaking, to co-operate in any way with other
councils, public and private bodies, any voluntary, charity or
third-sector organisation, or with any financial, commercial or
private enterprise.
2. Where more than one Council is responsible
for services in a geographic area, these Councils shall co-operate
to maximise the well-being of those within that area.
3. Councils are able to belong to any association
for the protection and promotion of their common interests and
to belong to an international association of any sort. Subject
to the general provisions of this code councils are entitled to
co-operate with councils in other countries for any matter.
Article Nine: Decision making
1. The administration of any local proposition,
referendum or other local decision making process shall follow
standards set by the Electoral Commission, and those responsible
for the conduct of any such democratic process shall be accountable
to the Electoral Commission for their performance against those
standards.
Article Ten: Legal Protection of Local Government
1. Councils have the right of recourse to a judicial
remedy in order to secure free exercise of their powers, and any
other principles of local self-government or individual rights
enshrined in law or contained within the code or evident in Human
Rights legislation.
101 On 18 January 2011, the Committee agreed "that
written evidence be sought from an academic witness, containing
an illustrative draft code governing the relationship between
central government and local authorities in England". Professor
Colin Copus of de Montfort University agreed to take on this work.
On 23 March 2011, the Committee wrote to all those who had given
oral evidence to the inquiry asking for their views on the draft
code for relations between central and local government. Suggested
revisions were received and at the request of the Committee incorporated
by Professor Copus into the draft code. The draft code was put
out to public consultation between February and November 2012,
and the Committee received 99 responses. Suggested revisions were
incorporated into the code by Professor Copus and resubmitted
to the Committee on 10 December 2012. Back
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