In her Mais lecture, the chancellor Rachel Reeves signalled a significant milestone around fiscal devolution, announcing a roadmap to be published in the autumn.
She set out plans to transfer power and resources, giving regional leaders control over a share of national tax revenues and local growth proceeds, while stressing the reforms would be fiscally neutral and mark ‘a genuine break with the past' from the UK's centralised model.
Given the national focus on defining the emerging role and function of strategic authorities, it is understandable that attention is concentrated at this level of the system. However, for devolution to succeed, councils must also play a central role. This is something the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for local government has its eye on.
In June, the APPG holds its second oral session as part of its inquiry into fiscal devolution, to examine how greater financial powers for local, as well as regional authorities, could drive economic growth, reduce inequalities and improve public services in England.
The inquiry aims to influence the Government's approach, particularly the Treasury's forthcoming fiscal devolution roadmap, by building cross-party consensus on practical reforms.
There is much that can be done at the local level to unlock financial flexibility. This includes modernising council tax to give councils greater discretion to better reflect local housing markets and ability to pay, alongside increased retention and local control over business rates to enable places to benefit more directly from the growth they generate.
Greater borrowing freedoms, so that councils can invest confidently in housing, infrastructure and regeneration, would support long-term growth. Introducing full cost recovery powers for fees and charges would ensure that regulatory services were funded without local taxpayer subsidy.
Such reforms would create a more resilient, locally responsive funding base and better equip councils to support strategic authorities as key delivery partners.
Tracy Bingham is deputy chief executive (s151 officer) and executive director – resources and transformation at South Derbyshire DC
