I had mixed feelings when I saw the two latest devolution deals for the West Midlands and Liverpool city region. I was delighted that Labour leaders were getting greater powers for their communities. Yet I felt frustration that it was a Tory chancellor signing the deals. It could, and should, have been a Labour chancellor.
It is tempting to let that frustration boil over into outright opposition. We have all heard the refrain: Why are Labour leaders doing deals with the Tories? Why is George Osborne doing this if not for his own political gain?
We should be sceptical of the Tories’ motives. Osborne is not a real convert to devolution, only when it suits him. He sees political advantage in being seen to devolve. But that has not stopped him forcing councils to sell off their housing stock. Nor has it stopped the centralisation of our schools system. And it has not stopped him imposing bigger cuts on local authorities than on any other part of government. So we should call out Osborne where he is riding roughshod over local communities – and we must pin the blame for the underfunding of local services where it belongs. We must also be clear that if Labour were in power, we would be taking a more ambitious and comprehensive approach to devolution and we would be funding services properly.
But we should celebrate the fact that Labour leaders are signing these deals, and we should back them all the way, for three reasons.
First, because the British people expect more from the Labour party than to stand and protest on the sidelines. These deals offer Labour an opportunity to show it wants more for the country than to shout loudly into the night. By building trust in our capacity to govern in town halls and the electorate are more likely to trust us with power in Whitehall.
Second, because Labour will make fairer choices than the Tories even if there is less money to spend. Over the past few years we have seen Labour leaders all over the country take fairer decisions for their communities than the Tories ever would. That is not based on political bias but facts. Labour councils have been protecting services, such as youth clubs, while Tory authorities take very different decisions.
Third, and most importantly, the Labour party has always believed in the redistribution of power from those that have it, to those that do not. We talk a lot about inequality of wealth and opportunity, but it is inequality of power that is often the root cause. If we are to address this then these devolution deals are the beginning of that journey.
Devolution provides an opportunity for Labour to do things a different way. Power should be devolved as close as possible to people and their communities, so that they can control the things that matter most to them. Labour will deliver fairer choices but by giving power to local people we will be able to deliver better services too.
The devolution of housing and planning powers could see a huge local drive to build homes – why not give people power and ownership over the process? The East London Community Land Trust, for example, gives power and control over the land to local residents, ensures it is used to the benefit of the whole community and sells homes at a price that is genuinely affordable.
Powers to jointly commission The Work Programme should see a more personalised and tailored approach to getting people back to work. Labour authorities are already leading the way with Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark integrating employment and skills across their boroughs which could transform outcomes for those in desperate need of work.
In Labour-run Oldham, the council has transformed social care provision by creating Oldham Care and Support as an ethical care company. In doing so they have ended the race to the bottom, ensuring longer appointments for users, improved pay and conditions for staff and greater involvement of people’s families. I am excited to see what Greater Manchester can achieve with the integration of health and social care as a whole.
The devolution deals so far include powers over housing, transport, employment and skills, policing, health and social care, business support, economic development and much more – all going to mainly Labour areas. That means in five years we will be able to point to Labour decisions and policies that have helped to tackle social deprivation, create jobs and build homes.
So Labour should seize this opportunity and use it to empower and then transform the lives of people and the communities we serve. A Labour party that puts trust in and gives power to people, will find that they are willing to return the favour.
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Luke Murphy is a former Labour policy and political adviser on housing and local government. He tweets @LukeSMurphy
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