Unfamilliar ground

Er.... Simon Jenkins has written a quite-good piece on local democracy. I missed it a few weeks ago, but in the interests of balance, I should add it here. I suppose the only major criticism (there are a number of minor gripes) I can have of it is that it can't have been written by the author of this. However, back to the current piece. Jenkins says: British people still regard their local council as their first port of call for public services: by two to one, compared with central government (according to Mori). Yet these councils are, to the centre, mere agencies. Their elected representatives are superfluous as conduits of accountability, and their voters not to be trusted with policy, taxes or priorities. Empowerment is empty without accountability, and accountability is empty without fiscal bite. There is no communal... [read full story]