Agenda item

The Chair welcomed Members to Councillors’ Forum. He also welcomed Marcus Jones MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Minister for Local Government.

The Minister stressed the importance of councillors to their local communities and drew on his own background in local government to share the challenges and opportunities he saw the sector facing.

The Minister discussed the priorities of the Department for Communities and Local Government:

·         Prudent finances as councils face further financial challenges and a need for increased certainty over funding to help councils plan.

·         Devolution on the most far-reaching scale in living memory, not just for cities but also for counties, smaller towns and neighbourhoods.

·         Service transformation enabled through devolution deals and joint working

·         Extending Right to Buy to Housing Association Tenants, alongside measure to ensure more houses are built.

Members asked for clarification around the funding of the extension for Right to Buy to Housing Association Tenants, expressing concern that many councils are not in a position to be able to sell their high value homes.

The Minister responded that no definition of high value homes has been set, and that lots of conversations are being had in the coming months to work out the details of the Bill.

Members asked whether an elected mayor was needed in every devolution deal.

The Minister replied that a Mayor would be an essential structure of accountability in devolution deals of the ambition they envisage, however in smaller scale devolution deals, this may not be a requirement.

Members asked about the future of Sector Led Improvement. The Minister acknowledged the important and excellent work of Sector Led Improvement and would be looking at it closely in the context of the spending review.