The Bill would devolve greater powers to councils and neighbourhoods and give local communities control over housing and planning decisions.
The main benefits of the Bill would be:
· Empowering local people.
· Freeing local government from central and regional control.
· Giving local communities a real share in local growth.
· A more efficient and more local planning system.
The main elements of the Bill are:
· Abolish Regional Spatial Strategies.
· Return decision-making powers on housing and planning to local councils.
· Abolish the Infrastructure Planning Commission and replace it with an efficient and democratically accountable system that provides a fast-track process for major infrastructure projects.
· New powers to help save local facilities and services threatened with closure, and give communities the right to bid to take over local state-run services.
· Abolish the Standards Board regime.
· Give councils a general power of competence.
· Require public bodies to publish online the job titles of every member of staff and the salaries and expenses of senior officials.
· Give residents the power to instigate local referendums on any local issue and the power to veto excessive council tax increases.
· Greater financial autonomy to local government and community groups.
· Create Local Enterprise Partnerships (to replace Regional Development Agencies) – joint local authority-business bodies brought forward by local authorities to promote local economic development.
· Form plans to deliver a genuine and lasting Olympic legacy.
· Outright abolition of Home Improvement Packs.
· Create new trusts that would make it simpler for communities to provide homes for local people.
· Review Housing Revenue Account (see also Government Review of Council Housing Finance: Proposals to Replace Housing Revenue Account Subsidy System).
Existing legislation in this area is:
This would be a major piece of legislation that would affect a wide range of existing housing, planning and local government legislation dating back decades in some cases.
Decision type: Key
Reason Key: Significant to Locality, Council or Services;
Decision status: Recommendations Approved
Wards affected: (All Wards);
Decision due: 14 December 2011 by Standards Committee
Decision due: 5 April 2012 by Standards Committee
Decision due: 10 May 2012 by Standards Committee
Decision due: 20 June 2012 by Standards Committee
Decision due: 26 July 2012 by Council
Department: (All Services)
Contact: Fiona McMillan, Legal Services Manager and Monitoring Officer Email: fiona.mcmillan@scambs.gov.uk Tel: 01954 713027.
Consultees
Standards Committee, 5 April, 10 May and 20 June 2012
Parish Councils via Standards Committee newsletters, Winter 2011/12, February 2012