It was “Tip” O’Neill, the former Speaker of the House of Representatives in the U.S. Congress who famously said “All politics is local”. This insight is a profoundly Conservative one – one which Labour has shown over 13 years that it just doesn’t get as its policies have disengaged people from society. That’s dangerous not just for society but for democracy too.
Yes, people are fed up with all politicians, but a range of government policies since 1997 have also made them feel powerless and betrayed by a centralised state that claims to know what is good for them better than they do themselves. For others, the welfare state has created not a feeling of security but rather a culture of dependency; the all-powerful, remote State will provide and so they lose all responsibility for their actions.
The debate that began several years ago about the need for a new “localism” was an important one – but it seemed to concentrate on political structures and it needed a human dimension too.
Yes we need to empower local communities to get involved in planning issues. In my part of Worcestershire, nothing has been worse for democracy than the feeling that local people have no say over how their areas will change – the dreadful “Regional Spatial Strategies” rule.
Yes, we need to make sure that major infrastructure decisions are only made after the views of local people are taken fully into account – the Infrastructure Planning Commission must go.
Yes, we need too to make sure that our police force, our NHS, our schools fully engage local people.
Yes we need to give local authorities more power too – we were wrong to take power away from them in the 1980s, but what this government has done to control councils from the centre is breathtaking.
But we also need to empower people and voluntary organisations to take responsibility again.
David Cameron’s “Big Society” idea this week struck a strong chord precisely because it was in tune with that simple but powerful thought. If we do not respond to and nurture local people’s views, aspirations and talents, then we build a remote debilitating state rather than a powerful, strong society.
The era of the Big State is ending – now we need to build that Big Society. It won’t be easy and it will take many years but it must be done.
( 5 comments ) Tags: Big Society, communities, Infrastructure Planning Commission, localism, Regional Spatial Strategies, Worcestershire
Comment by Howard Weaver on April 5, 2010 at 12:05 am
Is there any chance of getting politicians who actually represent thier constituents after the forth coming election or just a bunch of career politicians who we will be stuck with for four or five years
Comment by Geoff Herbert on April 5, 2010 at 10:11 am
As a local politician that is paid NOTHING,i spend many hours helping people and rarely get any thanks just brickbats.
This new localism means a lot to me,in being able to get things done.
Your local councillors always want to make things better locally,because we LIVE HERE.
Comment by Gary Bland on April 5, 2010 at 9:09 pm
As a person who had little everyday interest in politics in April 2009, and who is now running as a Conservative councillor candidate in my own ward of South Bermondsey, I believe that localism is the only way to go. But, I’d like to see devolvement of responsibility down to housing estate level, where resident caretakers would control a budget alongside an active TRA.
Comment by D Fulker on April 7, 2010 at 5:18 pm
This is too important for all the reasons Mr Luff describes. The labour approach, borne of big-brother’ism, insecurity and an over-zealous zeal for centralisation is so deeply flawed that we have ended up with a completely disenfranchised electorate who only see politics as something that happens elsewhere.
It’s not surprising therefore that most of the people I know and meet in my daily life have little or no regard for policies and are unable to debate politics effectively or from a basis of understanding.
It really is time for change – in our democracy. The people of this nation need to feel part of the system in order to engage, but that requires them to actively get involved in the system more than just once every few years!
Comment by Pericles on April 13, 2010 at 10:00 pm
Localism sounds great as long as it is wedded to direct democracy. If it’s just about devolving power to Nimbys and local vested interest against the real wishes of the people of the ‘polis’ then it may be no better than what we have now.