Many of the delegates heading for the Local Government Group’s annual conference in Birmingham will certainly feel that it has been a long, hard year since they last assembled.
Faced with translating the toughest financial settlement in a generation into budgets that still deliver vital services to their communities, the full impact of their decisions will become increasing apparent as the summer unfolds and councillors may well wonder just what comes next.
Certainly the LGA stands at a crossroads, with the prospect of a new leadership and new chief executive, and the Government’s flagship Localism Bill still making progress and now midway through the House of Lords stages.
The conference theme ‘Localism works’ invites debate about the role and purpose of local government and acknowledges that how exactly localism is defined will be crucial for the future of the sector.
It is a topic that recurs again and again in the main plenary discussions and at the many fringe events around the ICC in Birmingham.
From the very first debate looking back on central local relations after the first 12 months of the coalition government to ‘Is the future of public services localist?, What the Localism Bill means for accountability, choice and localism’ and ‘What will the mayoral provisions in the Localism Bill mean for accountability, choice and localism?’
New models of service delivery, councillors as social entrepreneurs, boosting the private sector, social housing in a cold climate, what the doctor ordered, shared services are all major topics for debate and discussion and for those who may bee feeling a little battered by the all the council bashing headlines that have marked the past year, there is even a special session on ‘reputation surgery’.
As ever the conference has attracted strong commercial with The MJ its media partner and widespread support from within the local government family.
A powerful range of senior figures across the political divide will parade before conference, with many delegates hoping that the Prime Minister David Cameron will make an appearance.
Certainly the Deputy Prime Minister and Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg is due to address delegates on Wednesday while on Thursday it will be the turn of the Labour leader Ed Miliband to address the conference in what will be his first major speech before the LGA.
Shortly afterwards it will be the turn of Health Secretary Andrew Lansley and after his speech, there will be a debate and discussion of reactions from conference with panellists, the former health adviser Paul Corrigan, a health adviser to Labour Government, and Jenny Owen.
The inimitable Community Secretary Eric Pickles will close the conference and present the award to the winner of this year’s Local Government Challenge.
