Fringe benefits from the conference season
Author: Alex Thomson, in the MJ |
So, the conference season is over and, having been at all three conferences, running more than a dozen fringe events, I have been given a fascinating insight into politics at both the very top and the grass roots.
And at the midpoint of the Parliament, it seemed a good time to take the temperature of localist ambition within the three parties. At the Liberal Democrat Party conference, the mood on the fringe was broadly positive, with activists perhaps a little more content with their party’s position in the great political game than they had been in recent years.
As ever, there was much emphasis on showcasing a wholeheartedly Liberal Democrat vision of localism, with Bath MP Don Foster championing the Localism Act’s new powers, such as the community right to bid, as exactly the sort of policy that Liberal Democrats could – and should – support.
Up in Manchester, at the Labour Party conference, again the mood was optimistic, even before leader Ed Milliband’s ‘One nation’ call to arms.
Delegates I met were very much looking forward, rather than back, and we heard plenty of positive noises about the potential role for local government under a future Labour Government. For example, MP for Derby North, Chris Williamson, argued that, given the right tools, councils were ideally placed to tackle challenges such as the prosperity gap between North and South, and Sheffield South East MP Clive Betts was forceful in making the case for the devolution of further financial powers to local government.
Rounding off the season was the Conservative Party conference, probably the busiest of the three, and certainly not as gloomy as you might expect for a party 10 points behind in the polls.
All in all, local government leaders were relaxed and looking for new innovations, albeit with forthcoming council elections on the brain. Our panellists were upbeat and positive about the crucial place-shaping role of local government in the new health landscape, with MP for Charnwood, Stephen Dorrell, focusing on health and wellbeing boards as a major opportunity, and a lot of positive and practical suggestions from Suffolk MP Dan Poulter, and Cllr Paul Carter, leader of Kent CC, on how to make health and social care systems work better together.
Across all three parties, it was interesting to see just how upbeat local government delegates were, despite the financial challenges facing the sector. Whether in private roundtable discussions or at open events, the leaders’ energy and can-do attitude was refreshing to see, as was the desire of MPs of all parties to embrace localism as part of the solution, not the problem.