Ministers have been accused of failing to recognise the ‘vital role’ of councils in cohesion after deciding to limit a new taskforce’s membership to mandarins.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) told The MJ its social cohesion taskforce was made up of an ‘internal civil service team’ charged with considering ‘how to tackle divisions in our communities and build common ground’.
With Epping Forest DC last week winning its court battle with the Home Office over the temporary closure of an asylum hotel, the district’s leader Chris Whitbread said: ‘By excluding local government, the [Government] is fundamentally failing to recognise the vital community leadership role that councils undertake on the ground.’
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