For the first time in nearly a decade Labour in local government united last weekend to discuss how we can deliver fairness in tough times. There was a palpable buzz around Labour’s local government conference with members, councillors and senior MPs visibly passionate about the future and the challenges we face for our communities.
Progress brought together a panel to debate how Labour is changing Britain for the better under the Tories that included the council leaders of Oldham and Stevenage, and shadow housing minister Jack Dromey with Ros McMullen, an academy head improving the life-chances of pupils in Leeds.
Unlike the regular interviews on TV, or jibes at prime minister’s questions or BBC Question Time, this isn’t a debate about what will happen in two years’ time, and it isn’t a debate on what pledges or policies Labour will or won’t be able to offer in the run-up to the next election – it’s the reality of many councils across the country where Labour councillors are playing their part to make Britain fairer.
Ros McMullen talked about the power of Tony Blair’s academies to deliver social justice, enabling headteachers to work in innovative ways with partners to radically alter the life-chances of her students, using academies as a force for change in social justice, while citing how the current government’s approach to academies is different and fails to do this. She impressed upon the need for education the best regardless of the political ideology.
Oldham’s Jim McMahon talked about how he took his opposition Labour group to power working with the local community and elected councillors to transform the opportunities of fairness within his local area, explaining that it’s not enough for Labour to paint a dark tableau that bleeds hope out of residents, partners and potential investors. By embracing a message of hope, Oldham Labour has been able to deliver progressive campaigns on fair energy and fair bus fares, with campaigns driven by people on the issue to matter to people as living standards continue to be squeezed, such as providing an alternative for cheaper school uniforms and working with the local job centre to deliver subsidised transport to ensure jobseekers can use public transport to get to interviews and start work.
Stevenage’s Sharon Taylor talked about how her group were champions of social justice not envy, driving forward policies based on measures of who is being hit hardest. It’s important to take note as Stevenage is building new council houses enabling it to tackle homelessness; providing money advice, a jobs plan and concessionary fares for jobseekers, with an economic taskforce searching for fair deal and with One Nation localism values at its heart.
Shadow local government minister Jack Dromey cited the experiences of Birmingham city council, under the leadership of Albert Bore to deliver a credible alternative to Tory localism with fairness in our DNA. He explained that Labour in Birmingham was rehabilitating the state, providing dynamic collaborative leadership to drive forward engines of growth, and one example of how they are doing this is by introducing the living wage.
Labour’s leadership also brought together a delegation to petition the government, and work with the other core cities for a fair deal. Labour in Birmingham is protecting the disabled and carers, and are pioneering radical devolution within the city and the city-region.
I asked the panel about how we can devolve power to young people, when we have a coalition government that seems bent on attacking the life-chances of young people: high youth unemployment, falling UCAS applications thanks to a tripling in university fees, a work programme that is more likely to deliver a job if you’re not on the programme, the age of first-time homeowners rising to the 40s, pension reform meaning young people will work longer for less – all meaning we need a strategy for ensuring that young people are seen and heard when it comes to public policy.
Jim McMahon and event chair Florence Nosegbe of Lambeth explained that their councils devolved power through youth councils, ensuring younger citizens a voice in council meetings, and Jack Dromey explained that Erdington had brought together a youth parliament from the ‘usual suspects’ but also those hardest to reach to draw up their own manifesto along with a young homeless people’s parliament. Sharon Taylor cited the example of Stevenage’s young people’s commission to radically think about enterprise and how those elements could work within further education – giving young people the opportunity to run their own business before they left full-time education.
One thing was clear: Labour in local government is delivering inspirational leadership with progressive politics at the forefront, ensuring that everyone plays their part to deliver fairness is at the heart of One Nation Labour localism.
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Rowan Draper is a councillor on Stafford borough council. He tweets @rowan_draper