Local government is 'lacking ambition'

A Commons communities & local government select committee report calls for a "wholesale cultural change" across central government and the media as part of a transfer of power from Whitehall to local areas.

However, special criticism was reserved for councils. The committee claimed it was "disappointed to note that local government has become so used to existing in a culture of central control that the ambition to take on powers and responsibilities from central government is sometimes limited and even timid".

The LGA meanwhile must "keep testing the boundaries" of what can be achieved in the current legislative framework.

Speaking to LGC, committee chairman Dr Phyllis Starkey said she had been "disappointed" with the level of ambition on display from some of those who submitted evidence to the inquiry.

"It’s not simply that central government is seeking to control local government but that the sector as a generality lacks ambition," she said.

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