Growing up in the 1950s and 1960s it was quite clear the role of Labour councils. They built houses for you, educated your children and quite often gave you a job. Herbert Morrison, leader of the London county council, often spoke about ‘building the Labour vote’ and he meant it quite literally. With the benefit of hindsight clearly Labour councils made mistakes but they provided generations of working class families with security and the hope of better for their children. When political commentators talk about Labour’s core vote we need to remember that that is where it came from.
Looking back it is remarkable how Labour councils (and councillors) have become peripheral to Labour decision-making and policymaking. The 1980s were probably the defining moment when a combination of righteous anger over the Thatcher government’s economic policy and a period of ‘infantile leftism’ saw Labour local government turn in on itself. The return of Labour under Tony Blair saw a much greater focus on centralised command and control of government expenditure. Whilst it may have seen improvements to public service in the short term it resulted in a different form of ‘producer capture’ by external consultants and Westminster based thinktanks. None of this has been accompanied by any reduction in the demands and expectations on local government. To paraphrase Stanley Baldwin ‘this is responsibility without power – the prerogative of the patsy throughout the ages’.
The marginalisation of local government has had its consequences. By the 1970s Britain had a surplus of social housing and council housing. Even in the 1980s individual London councils were still building thousands of affordable homes every year. Back then there was a strong connection between housing need and the ability of local councils with a political mandate to respond. Now that almost the entire function has been transferred to housing associations social house building has collapsed. ‘Generation Rent’ – those aged under 30 who have no option other than renting in the private sector – now have no effective political mechanism to address their concerns.
Thankfully, recent statements from Ed Milliband and Jon Cruddas indicate that Labour local government will be brought back from the cold and will have a more crucial role in both decision making and delivery of public services (although, to be effective, there has to be a clear policy towards more independent funding of local government).
So is it all good news that Labour local councils will have a strong voice in a future Labour government? Well, just so long as they become the champion of local interests rather than the town hall. The last twenty 20 have seen a massive centralisation of power and influence into the Westminster-Whitehall axis. It has led to the hollowing out of our politics and civic life where millions have turned their backs on political activity of all kinds (and, sadly, sometimes Labour councils have contributed to the process).
For the future we have to create a new form of civic pride with the council at the centre of local ambition and challenge to a range of public and private institutions. Some of this will require new ways of working. Europe’s largest housing co-operative was created in London Waterloo when the then GLC sold 13 acres of prime property for £1 to a social enterprise trust with a strict covenant to develop exclusively for affordable housing and social facilities. This will place new demands on Labour councillors some of whom will be up to it and some frankly won’t. It will certainly require more confident and visible local political leadership and we will need to think seriously as a party how to attract and support such leadership. At its best Labour local government encouraged working class communities to prosper and ordinary people to achieve extra-ordinary things for themselves and their families. Times have moved on, the process of communications have been transformed but those Labour values remain constant.
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Paul Wheeler writes on local politics. In Defence of Labour Councils will be launched at Labour party conference to give a fuller explanation on how Labour councils can contribute to the renewal of public services and the Labour party
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Labour local government conference takes place this weekend. See here for more details
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