Ben Page
Ben Page is global chief executive officer of Ipsos
Can we learn from the authorities who are coping with austerity well?
AI has huge potential to save time in local government if people can be encouraged to use it, says Ben Page. 'As the best leaders in the sector know, people need time to make changes and adapt', he adds.
Why it might be better to be French
France's long-term planning – by yes, big government – has given them a better rail network, safety from fossil fuel dependence and more, says Ben Page.
If the reading of opinion is faulty, nothing gets done
Public preference and tolerance is commonly underestimated and misunderstood, and we need more leaders who understand when to ignore opinion polls, says chief executive of Ipsos Ben Page.
Cynicism about politicians reaches all-time high
Ben Page says most people still feel that there is an imbalance in Government spending at a local level, particularly in Wales and the North of England. 'This bodes badly for Red Wall seats.'
After the interregnum
Ben Page says: 'Voters want growth, reassurance and support – but public finances are not in good shape and many of the solutions are not ones voters currently can agree on. Maybe things have to first get worse before they can get better.'
Mr Sunak will find it hard to meet the funding squeeze the British state now faces
Ben Page says 'we may now be at a point where we need to change our expectations of public services, or we may just muddle through – until finally we hit a tipping point in public opinion'. Or we may just have seen one.
‘Cakeism’ still seems the solution de jour
Strategic hard choices are ones that most Conservatives – but also many voters at large – are happy to try and ignore, says Ben Page.
Targeting future opportunities
LGA conference plenary speaker Ben Page looks at the challenges and opportunities for councils in the post-pandemic 2020s, including more diverse communities and the need for massive structural change in planning.
The results reinforce the realignment of Britain's electoral geography
Ben Page says 'nationally the Conservatives are hurting, but you wouldn’t bet against them winning again, despite "levelling up" being the policy area voters think they are worst at'.
The Government should push on fast with reorganisation
Anyone looking at bold plans for the future should bite the bullet on reorganisation and get it done fast, advises global chief executive of Ipsos Ben Page.
It looks likely that councils will continue to live on the thin gruel
Councils are expected to be allowed to increase bills by 2.8% per year, says Ben Page. 'The bad news is that all this means the now familiar tale of cuts to council services looks likely again unless more cash is forthcoming'
Beautiful, popular, healthy and sustainable new places are what we all want
The public does not feel politicians are doing enough to tackle the housing crisis, says Ben Page. He looks at what councils will have to do to win through on their plans.
Voters everywhere tend to feel the centre spends less on their area than elsewhere
One of the underlying challenges of levelling up is just how much economic heavy lifting will ultimately be needed, says Ben Page. 'All this highlights local government’s constant challenge in explaining to residents where it is spending money.'
The NHS is sacrosanct – local government not so much
Ben Page says the public is becoming more positive about the future and about both the NHS and Government’s ability to deal with whatever comes next. 'And local government has generally performed strongly in dealing with massive dislocation'.
The move to home working poses huge problems
The trend to more working from home looks set to continue post COVID, says Ben Page. 'But it poses huge problems for anyone invested in commercial property or city centres – which includes many local authorities.'
Local government does a brilliant job in elections
Ben Page 'cannot ever recall a UK election 'like the one Americans are currently fighting over'. He says it is 'sometimes worth remembering just how efficient and effective British local government is'.
Unitary 'mayhem' has failed to arrive thus far
The public may care often care a lot about key local services but aren't so interested in the structure of local government, says Ben Page. He expects councils' endless ability to just 'get on with it' on instructions from Whitehall will continue.
Councils have the local support to do what they must
As local government works hard to revive local economic activity and resume normality, there is strong support from its communities for it to do whatever it takes, according to Ben Page.
Who are the losers?
At least in terms of public opinion, local government itself has come out of the pandemic crisis better than the civil service, says Ben Page – with 55% saying local authorities did a good job compared to 47% for the civil service.
After COVID-19 will local government finally get the resources it needs?
Local government will seem to cope with whatever gets thrown at it - both its great strength, and its great weakness, says Ben Page.