WHITBY CHALLENGES BROWN

28-06-2007

Birmingham Council leader Mike Whitby has challenged the new Prime Minister Gordon Brown to hand over more powers to local government.

Whitby has called for a “great debate” on the role of Britain’s major cities and wants to the government to reverse the centralising trend of the last decade, which has seen more and more power handed over to unelected quangos like Advantage West Midlands.

The arthritic speed of the New Street station project is seen as an example of how government bureaucracy can slow down much needed change, with the Department of Transport and AWM taking much longer to come to a deal than Birmingham might have achieved in its own right.

Whitby said: “We need devolution of powers and resources from central government and regional quango’s.

“But we also need greater freedom to make better use of our own assets, through powers to borrow and invest in the local economy - the sort of powers that are taken for granted in many competitor cities in Europe and North America.

“As a nation we are too centralised in London. To ensure they remain globally relevant, our major Cities need extra powers and more investment, so that major schemes - such as New Street Station - can be achieved quickly and efficiently.”

Whitby comments come after the Conservative MP for Sutton Coldfield recently highlighted in the House of Commons the relatively small amount of AWM cash spent in Birmingham compared to the size of the population.

Former Tory minister Michael Heseltine has also called for greater powers for local government - but he wants it invested in a powerful Mayor, rather than a traditional council leader like Whitby (see our story here)

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