Cdn.ps.emap.com
Friday 8th May 2015
The Core Cities UK Cabinet calls on those forming the new Parliament, across all parties, to ensure that devolution to cities and other places remains an absolute priority.
Any Government serious about economic growth and deficit reduction should immediately enter a dialogue with us. Our offer is to work with Parliament to Rebalance, Reform and Renew Britain.
Rebalance and grow the economy to create more jobs and eliminate the deficit. Reform public services to improve outcomes and reduce costs through better local coordination of funding and services, focusing on people and place. Renew democracy giving people a major stake in their future.
The facts speak for themselves. Independent forecasts demonstrate that with greater freedoms the eight English Core Cities alone could deliver an additional £222 billion and 1.16 million jobs into the economy by 2030. That’s the equivalent of adding the entire economy of Denmark to the UK. With Cardiff and Glasgow now on side that figure will be even higher.
Devolution to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland continues, raising important questions for England. This will not however unlock the massive economic potential of cities across the UK. The international evidence is clear. Devolution below the level of nations is critical to address urgent challenges of driving prosperity, increasing equality and strengthening democracy. Cities must be freed from unnecessary central controls whether from Westminster, Holyrood, Cardiff Bay or Stormont.
Report after report has demonstrated that devolved cities do best. With more freedom to invest in infrastructure, skills, trade and innovation, cities across the UK will boost their nation’s economies.
Devolution will deliver better public services, recognising the different needs of communities and managing reductions in public spending in a joined up way. Far from avoiding a post code lottery, our current one size fits all approach guarantees it.
Through more local empowerment we can also reverse the loss of faith in politics and strengthen civil society, which cannot be restored by remote national governments. Greater local power gives people a major stake in their future.
Important progress has been made. Across the political spectrum, business leaders and academics there is agreement that cities are the solution not the problem, and that they could contribute more with greater freedoms. There is also agreement on the need to rebalance Britain’s economy to unlock that potential, and a programme of devolution has begun to support this, with our cities already generating results; more jobs, higher levels of skills’ economic growth, more people in jobs and training.
This is not the time for hesitation or doubt. It is a time for action and trust. Action, to give people more freedom to decide how taxes raised locally are spent locally. Trust, to let those who know their places best get on with the job.
The choice for devolution is a choice about what kind of country we want. One that remains amongst the most centralised in the world, holding back its economic powerhouses, undermining civil society and placing little faith in anyone outside Government? Or one that seeks to build a stronger sense of shared endeavour, with all its economic centres freed to contribute, local people trusted to make the right choices, and a sustainable future for services that support quality of life, place and prosperity.
We choose the latter and urge you to show the shared leadership this country needs to deliver that future.
The Core Cities UK Cabinet
[pic] [pic]
Councillor Sir Albert Bore Mayor George Ferguson CBE
Leader, Birmingham City Council Leader, Bristol City Council
[pic] [pic]
Councillor Phil Bale Councillor Gordon Matheson CBE
Leader, Cardiff City Council Leader, Glasgow City Council
Councillor Keith Wakefield Mayor Joe Anderson OBE
Leader, Leeds City Council Leader, Liverpool City Council
Councillor Sir Richard Leese Councillor Nick Forbes
Leader, Manchester City Council Leader, Newcastle City Council
Councillor Jon Collins Councillor Julie Dore
Leader, Nottingham City Council Leader, Sheffield City Council
-----------------------
Open letter to national politicians
Core Cities
C/O Manchester City Council
Level 5
Manchester Town Hall Extension
Lloyd Street
Manchester
M60 2LA
................
................
In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.
To fulfill the demand for quickly locating and searching documents.
It is intelligent file search solution for home and business.