MPC secures outline consent for retirement village in Mid Sussex

Councillors in Mid Sussex have backed proposals for the development of a new retirement village.

The scheme will provide new bungalows, a care home and a community centre for Age UK West Sussex.

The approval was won with 11 votes to 5, after the officer’s recommendation for refusal was overturned following a lengthy discussion and some strong opinions.

Council members assessed the need for a new care facility against the principle of a strategic gap between Haywards Heath and Cuckfield.

Council members in favour of the scheme noted its popularity with Haywards Heath Town Council, whom MPC had engaged with at an early stage in the consultation process.

Furthermore, MPC provided support for the developer and planning consultants during a Councillor site visit; those members who had attended the event also endorsed the scheme.

Prior to the committee meeting, MPC produced a short brochure explaining the key benefits of the proposal. The next stage will involve developing a detailed application which responds to the concerns raised by members.

Small-l Localism beckons Miliband

If Ed Miliband was hoping for a quiet, business-as-usual start to 2012, his post-festive optimism was rudely spurned by a cold – and very much “blue” - reality. 

A subtle but stinging attack from Glasman

Last Thursday (January 5), Lord Maurice Glasman – Labour peer and architect of the controversial “Blue Labour” ideology – launched a subtle but stinging attack on the opposition leader. Writing in the New Statesman, Glasman accused Miliband of a failing “sectional agenda, (which is) based on the idea that disaffected Liberal Democrats and public-sector employees will give Labour a majority next time around”. 

This is perhaps the most caustic advertisement yet of wavering party faith in the leader. “We (the party) show no relish for reconfiguring the relationship between the state, the market and society,” Glasman argues, “the world is on the turn, yet we do not seem equal to the challenge”. Stark criticism indeed. 

The inevitable media hyperbole that followed was rushed out in pretty predictable terms. The Guardian strung a panel of journalists together and asked them to confer judgement on “What Ed Needs To Do Now”, while Labourlist, an independent Labour website, ran the imaginatively entitled piece; “Labour’s Plan A Has Failed”. 

Yet beyond the press imbroglio, some important points have been missed: chiefly, that the most significant attack yet on Miliband’s leadership comes from a leftist academic who staunchly espouses local, democratic forms of community management. This indicates the political solvency of general ‘localism’ ideals (emphasis on the small-l), and suggests that localism per se is now firmly rooted in the cross-party political consciousness. Could it be that Ed is hopelessly overlooking a Labour-style localism – such as Glasman’s small-c conservative, Guild socialism-esque “Blue Labour” - in his search for policy alternatives to challenge the coalition? If so, does this mean that localism (or at least strives for greater community politics) will remain a fixed feature of British political discourse?

A politics of responsibility and reciprocity

Jim Murphy, the Shadow Secretary of Defence, followed up on Glasman’s remarks, stating that the Labour leadership cannot stand to gain “genuine credibility” without accepting some cutbacks to government spending. The implication here is that Labour also needs to start thinking out loud about how community politics can foster (as Glasman dubs it) a “relational” politics among people; a politics of responsibility and reciprocity. 

Putting aside policy matters for a moment, there are glaring indicators in popular culture that suggest a collective desire for greater community spirit. Forget Tory trees, Labour roses and Lib Dem birds; one of today's most ubiquitous - and pluckily British - political images is the crown of King George VI, sat atop the defining mantra of good ol' Blighty: Keep Calm and Carry On. 

Rekindling a cosy British stoicism

This populist reappropriation of a wartime morale-boost sticks, and for good reason. For better or worse, the coalition's austerity measures (as played out against a backdrop of global monetary woe) have rekindled a cosy British stoicism somewhat lost in New Labour's “grand” project.  Where once it was “Spend! Spend! Spend!”, the common wisdom now is “Circle wagons! Tighten purses! Show those pesky French what a triple-A really looks like!” Populist attitudes have almost subconsciously endorsed - if not explicit localism – then at least a “community” ideal. 

Community politics is very much trending

All of which suggests the following: community politics, whether under the guise of “Localism”, “reciprocity” , “relational politics” or any other branding, is very much trending in the political world right now, and looks set to do so well into the future. Ed Miliband and the Labour leadership would do well to consider seriously the standpoint of figures like Glasman, who articulate viable and alternative political strategies at the local level which simultaneously cater to the majority vogue for greater “community togetherness”. Small-l localism is here to stay; the question is not “will Labour throw their hat into the ring?”, but rather, “when?”


By Callum Barton

Can the Lib Dems halt their local government decline?

As we say goodbye to 2011, I am sure many of our Liberal Democrat friends will be pleased to see it go. In a recent poll, Lib Dems reportedly close the year with just a 15% approval rating. 2011 was a year that saw them nearly get wiped off the electoral map in Scotland, their defeat on the AV referendum, and the loss of just under 700 local government seats across England and Wales. With 2012 local elections fast approaching, the question remains, can the Lib Dems halt their local government decline? 

Local election results last May

The results for the Lib Dems in May last year can be interpreted in many ways. These local elections were the first time that the public had a chance to comment on the coalition. While these were local elections, austerity measures implemented by the coalition have been passed through to local authorities and front line services have been affected. This has made coalition politics, local politics. 

Voters who do not like the policies of the coalition that, in the past, had been inclined to vote Lib Dem, either did not show up at the polls or turned to Labour who profited hugely from the Lib Dems misfortune. The Labour vote increased by an average of four points more in wards that a Lib Dem was defending than it did in those that had previously been held by a Conservative. 

It may have been that Lib Dem voters who sit more to the ideological left within the party were punishing the party for getting into bed with the right. These voters were voicing their distaste for the 'cosy' relationship that Lib Dems have been exhibiting with their coalition partners. Similar concerns were echoed senior Lib Dem politicians who called for a more concerted effort to establish an independent voice within the coalition. 

Why have the Tories done ok?

The Conservative Party, however, did not do too badly in 2011 finishing with a modest gain of 77 local council seats. You may be wondering if this was about punishing the coalition, then why did the Tories do OK? Nick Clegg and his party were perceived by voters as passive enablers to a Tory lead government. Conservatives were given the credit for coalition successes while Lib Dems took the blame for coalition failures. After rolling over on tuition fees and the party's muddied stance on NHS reform, Lib Dems have simply lost the faith of much of the electorate. 

It also could be that being in opposition is easier than being in government. Electoral downturn is common for the party in government at the time. You only have to look across the pond to America to see the truth in this. Obama’s party got a beating in the midterm elections for House of Representatives and lost control of the chamber. 

This however has not ruled him out as a presidential contender in 2012. Although the US and Britain are different political contexts - this is the nature of politics, support from the electorate fluctuates. The Lib Dems are new to government and to coalitions. In this case, the first vote post-general election turned out especially bad for the 'rookies'. 

Glimmers of hope

While it all may seem like doom and gloom, there are some interesting anomalies in pockets across the country that could bring a glimmer of hope to the Lib Dem 2012 campaign. Take Bath and North East Somerset (BANES) for example. In May 2011 the Lib Dems took three seats from the Conservatives and, with backing from the Labour Party, have taken control of the council. But, can the success in BANES be replicated in other areas? 

Before we get ahead of ourselves, there were some unique circumstances in BANES that helped the Lib Dems do well. Paul Crossley, the Lib Dem leader of the council, attributes this success to their ability to communicate with voters and differentiate local elections from a referendum on the coalition. This may be true but there are other factors that also added to their success. 

Firstly, up until 2007, the Lib Dems ran the council. Under their control, the council funded a number of controversial schemes that they ultimately paid for in the ballot box. The elections in 2011 had given the Lib Dems enough time to re-group and meant that they no longer suffered from the incumbency factor.  Secondly, the size and density of Bath means that it is an ideal place to run an on the ground campaign (leaflet drops, door canvassing etc). This is something that the Lib Dems are known for being effective at and is partly why they usually do so well in local elections. 

Finally, the local Lib Dem MP, Don Foster, did very well in the last general election. This gave the BANES Lib Dem campaign organisers a lot of canvas data along with a large core of supporters to call on. These three ingredients combined made BANES a recipe for success but also a unique case and unlikely to be transferred to other councils. 

Voters turning away from the party

Given that local government elections are usually a strength for the Liberal Democrats, last year was without doubt a setback for the party. The voters that the Lib Dems have relied on in past are turning away from the party in favour of others or not voting at all.  BANES may have bucked the trend; however it is unlikely that other areas will be able to replicate the series of factors that lead to their success. 

Recent polling figures paint a picture of a steadied decline in support but can the Lib Dems stop their loss of local government seats? In the short term, the brief answer is no but do not count them out just yet. With all political parties, support ebbs and flows. 2012 may prove to be another unsuccessful year but their future will be pinned on their performance nationally and their ability to establish an independent, truly Liberal Democrat voice within the coalition.


By Nikki Davies  

Urban regeneration: Can it continue under the same steam in this period of economic uncertainty?

The concept of urban regeneration is seen as one of the defining hallmarks of the previous New Labour administration. Ever since Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott set up the Urban Task Force in 1999, following Lord Rogers’ report into ‘Towards an Urban Renaissance’, the previous Labour government directed considerable resources towards regenerating our key towns and cities, particularly through quangos such as the Homes & Communities Agency, Regional Development Agencies and public-private Urban Regeneration Companies. 

While the inner sanctum of a number of cities and towns have seen marked social and economic improvement throughout this period, such as Liverpool, Sheffield, Salford and Derby, the wasteful nature of the organisations responsible, both in terms of the organisations themselves and the densely layered, ‘trickle-down’ structure through which they were funded, has been lambasted by the current Conservative-led government. The conclusion was the rather clumsy destruction of the RDAs, the drastic cutting back of funding to the HCA, and the resulting direct demise of URCs, with most winding up or continuing to run on skeleton staff.


A lack of gap funding

This left a number of important urban regeneration projects, including housing, commercial and retail developments, without the gap funding that they needed to continue. There is a strong argument that a large number of schemes were not designed to be respondent to market demand in the long term and did not survive because there was simply not the potential or current market for certain types of accommodation in certain areas. However a number of schemes simply required gap funding to ensure that complex urban brownfield development sites got ‘off the ground’, where difficulties presented themselves in the form of land ownership, ground contamination, demolition and remediation costs or, most crucially, the risks and difficulties involved in generating the finance required to invest in areas undergoing make-or-break social and economic transitions.

We are in an era where banks are likely to be, and already are in some cases, more selective and more cautious in their lending patterns and policies. Therefore, in order for these projects to continue in the storm of economic uncertainty, it is vital to reduce the perceived risk to the financiers of private sector developers and expanding businesses, both in terms of short term capital finance and the long term revenue potential of the development.


Short term financing options

In terms of the short term financing of regeneration projects, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has mooted the idea of Tax Increment Funding on a number of occasions, whereby local authorities can borrow from the Treasury against resulting rises in business rates from large development schemes. This could provide the funding required, reducing the risk for private developers in transitional areas to make schemes more attractive. However, this would place the risk firmly at the feet of local authorities, who in many cases have been accused of lacking the commercial awareness and ambition to enable development.

Funding for regional development that was previously provided by Regional Development Agencies now arrives through Local Enterprise Partnerships, under the guise of the Regional Growth Fund. While this arrangement is likely to be seen as a more efficient method for channelling funding towards regional and local job creation, a number of organisations have raised concern at the delay in establishing the LEPs and the resulting delay in accessing RGF funding. A large food-processing company in County Durham has recently entered into administration, having previously been promised funding from the Regional Growth Fund to expand its facilities. In the same news day, the Interim Chairman of One North East expressed concern that European Regional Development Funding for job creation and development is being lost with the inability to match it with local funding.


Long term viability

In terms of the long term viability of regeneration schemes, it is important for developers and occupiers to see the long term potential of the town or city, in terms of vibrancy, economic activity and most importantly, accessibility. It is therefore vital for the government to invest in making our towns and cities more accessible, making it easier and therefore more desirable to live, work and do business. After all, time is money.

In December 2011, the Secretary of State for Transport Justice Greening announced a £1.5 billion programme of investment in major road and public transport schemes, where schemes devised under the previous Labour administration were invited to submit revised bids for funding. This is undoubtedly a positive move for those places where transport schemes were approved, albeit with revised-down funding requirements, and will surely enhance the development potential of a number of towns and cities undergoing transformation change. However, the policy think-tank IPPR North recently noted a severe disparity in government spending on major transport projects, highlighting that £2,700 is spent on major transport schemes on average per person in London whereas only £5 is spent per head in the North East. If the government is to make a real commitment to regional growth and market-ready regeneration, it must reverse its policy of reinforcing the dominance of London as an economic centre and hence relieve the stress and strain placed on it in meeting the demands of Britain’s population.


Summary

Regeneration can continue and power through a challenging economic climate, but it needs the access to funding, whichever form it arrives in, and it needs it fast. It is difficult to argue against claims that Labour’s quangos have been inefficient and frivolous with the public purse; however, the current Government must maintain the momentum created throughout the last 15 years and quickly establish mechanisms to protect the future of regeneration schemes in the UK.


By Paul Erskine