Publications 2008/2007

Boris Johnson was elected Mayor of London on May 2nd with over 1 million votes. The first one million vote mandate for a Mayor of London since the creation of the position eight years ago. The Mayor of London is now, arguably, the second most powerful politician in the UK after the Prime Minister. After eight years of Mayor Livingstone the election of Boris Johnson represents a fresh start for London. “After eight years of Mayor Livingstone the election of Boris Johnson represents a fresh start for London.

Download full document

A new research note by Localis entitled ‘The Future for Regional Governance’ suggests that the Government’s case for Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) is based on little or no evidence, and that the current Sub-National Economic Development and Regeneration Review (SNR) does not go far enough to devolve power to from the regional tier to local authorities (LAs). The report proposes a dramatic overhaul of the current responsibilities of RDAs.

Download full document

What are the qualities of a successful council leader?

Stephen Greenhalgh, Leader of Hammersmith and Fulham Borough Council since 2006, argues that the orderly, rational skills of a manager are essential - but not enough. They need to be harnessed to the visionary qualities of a leader and the politician's communication skills and pragmatic adjustments to reality .He writes as the Conservative Leader of a hotly contested, traditionally Labour-voting London Borough, but his arguments and experience have resonance for council leaders of all parties.

Download full document

In our pamphlet Two Cheers for the Concordat we argue that the Concordat signed between Her Majesty’s Government and the LGA represents a positive step towards a constitutional settlement for local government. If constitutional status is at the core of the inequality in central-local relations, finance cannot be ignored. A mention in clause fifteen to the European Charter of Local Self-Government, if it is a wedge, it is a very thin one; still, it should be possible to work from this towards some of the reforms hinted at by Lyons (for example, assignment of a share of national taxes) or the more radical but still realistic options canvassed by Policy Exchange in recent years. If some form of new constitutional settlement is achieved – as the Prime Minister clearly wishes – whether through a written constitution or, more probably, through a variety of less formal means, then the Concordat could be an element of that settlement. Overall the Concordat means that for financial and local government subsidiarity the direction of travel is ‘improving’.

Download full document

Sir Simon Milton’s address to Localis and Policy Exchange was Sir Simon’s inaugural speech as Chairman of the Local Government Association. Leader of Westminster Council since 2000, he has taken the council to the top of the local government league tables and has won them numerous awards including Council of the Year 2004. Sir Simon addressed ways to take the localist cause forward on issues including housing, gang culture and health.

Download full document

There are countless programmes, schemes and policies in place which are meant to help our cities regenerate. Yet, despite all of them and despite huge amounts of money spent on urban policy, success is difficult to measure. The Policy Exchange project analyses the historic development of urban regeneration in the UK, compares this with experiences made abroad (Netherlands, Poland, Germany, Hong Kong and Canada) and will recommend a new strategy to make our cities attractive places for people and business alike.

Download full document