Torquay town hall

Call for greater local government power from outgoing chief executive

Devon County Council’s outgoing Chief Executive has praised the ability of local government, as well as arguing the case of greater powers, in his farewell speech.

After almost 20 years in charge of Devon County Council, Dr Phil Norrey is retiring. With his time at the helm making him the longest-serving Chief Executive in the history of the council, he spoke to members of the council for the final time, putting emphasis on the ability of local government ad how powers should be increased:

“I firmly believe that people should determine what happens to their communities, how resources are allocated, what the priorities are with a mandate given to them by the local electorate.

“And actually, the role for central government in this country since the second world war has been one of aggregating powers unto itself and that process really needs to change. The world’s changed, it’s much more dynamic now, and all politics is local at the end of the day, isn’t it?

“But what I do know is that when that day comes; the culture, the foundation of this place will enable Devon County Council really to take advantage of that and to be the true leader it deserves to be. It is a leader, but it’s got its hands tied behind its back at the moment.”

Devon’s councils are currently in the midst of negotiations with the government to gain greater powers from Westminster, with the call for more power for local authorities growing louder by the month. Other areas of the country have seen drastic changes to the way that power is arranged in their local government, so could a major shift be on the horizon?

PSE Mag

PSE February/ March 2024

Digital Infrastructure - the key to shaping the future of our rural communities

Dive into our latest edition for February/March!

 

Videos...

View all videos
Online Conference

Presenting

2024 Online Conferences

In partnership with our community of public sector leaders responsible for procurement and strategy across local authorities and the wider public sector, we’ve devised a collaborative calendar of conferences and events for leaders of industry to listen, learn and collaborate through engaging and immersive conversation.

All our conferences are CPD accredited, which means you can gain points to advance your career by attending our online conferences. Also, the contents are available on demand so you can re-watch at your convenience.

Public Sector Executive Podcast

Ep 51. Diversity, equality and representation with Stuart Love, Chief Executive of Westminster City Council

It is the role of local government leaders to make the decisions that will best deliver for the communities that they represent. That much is obvious.
 

How can they do this, however, if they are not accurately representative of those very communities?
 

Great strides have been made in ensuring that everyone, regardless of their ethnicity, race, gender, or social class is represented in some way within local government. Chief Executive of Westminster City Council Stuart Love joins host Dan Benn to talk about why this work is important, the different work that is being done in Westminster, and how his background influences his stance on equality and diversity.

More articles...

View all