Spelman warns Local Democracy Bill does not provide essential change

Caroline Spelman has criticised Labour’s Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Bill for serving up “more of the same” rather than real change.

The Shadow Communities and Local Government Secretary said the Bill was simply “legislation for legislation’s sake” and attacked it for being “unnecessary and even counter-productive”.

She also warned that, far from being a bill about local democracy, it was actually a “charter for snatching power away from people”:

“It’s about taking power away from locally elected decision-makers and off to regional quangos, Combined Authorities and Economic Prosperity Boards.”

Caroline said supporting the Bill would “send a clear message that we are simply not listening to the voice of the electorate”.

She warned that, “Unless we discharge real power, the current animosity between the public and Parliament is simply going to turn into the long goodbye.”

And she stressed, “What this Bill makes abundantly clear is that for a public hungry for change in politics, the only way to get it is with a change of Government.”