With the summer silly season over for another year, it's back to business. In the pre-party conference season, within the run-up to the general election next year, business for local government is most definitely politics. And, with the sand barely brushed off your flip-flops, it appears that the political posturing and bun chucking has already kicked-off in earnest with the news that Caroline Spelman has been encouraging local authorities to hold back on their regeneration developments until after the general election – and the presumed Tory victory. The cynics among us who have been predicting local and central government would gradually grind to a standstill until after the election are being proven depressingly accurate – after all, why work to the demands of a Government which may not exist this time next year? The politicians are not the only ones playing the game. The Department of Health is struggling to get local authorities to play ball with its consultation on future services for older people – or with the current spending forecasts, should that be ‘lack of future services for older people'. But moves to slow down can't be good for local government. Both these agendas are at the forefront of the Total Place initiative – which is already stymied by a lack of joined-up action across government departments and can't afford to be slowed further. Under a new Conservative Government, Total Place is unlikely to be scrapped. Re-branded and claimed as its own, perhaps, but the principle of moving local public services forward in co- operation and with shared budgets is essential to provide joined-up services for local people. As The MJ reported last month (see The MJ, 20 August, p18) joining up services between local authorities and health bodies is hard enough – largely due to the health sector rarely hearing about it as a priority from there own political masters. It is hard to believe any local authority would stymie the chances of the economic recovery in their local community in an effort to score quick political points – but I'm sure the cynics will claim otherwise. Local authorities may be political organisations, but let's put politics aside and move forward with Total Place and with the main job in hand – of rebuilding the economy from the community upwards. Heather Jameson, Deputy Editor, The MJ
