In My View
Posted by Robert Walter, MP for North Dorset, at 15:59, Fri 9 November 2007:
The mere mention of the unelected South West Regional Assembly is enough to get the blood boiling of many of my constituents. Composed of selected local councilors and so called “social partners” the body deliberates and advises the Government Office of the South West. That Office appears to be answerable to no one, other than the minister who appointed it.
Much of what the assembly does could be just as well done either by local councils themselves or by members of Parliament at Westminster. The whole concept is based on the notion that there is some homogenous community known as the South West. As we all know there is little common interest economically, socially and culturally between the people of Tewkesbury, Truro and Bournemouth. They are all English, but that level of democratic accountability is another issue. Outside there Englishness there is little to unite them, other than the direction you leave London to get there.
So there was a big hoorah when the Government announced that the assemblies would be abolished and replaced by Parliamentary accountability. This would improve, one hoped, both the position of Parliament and the power of MPs to do their job.
Well now Mr. Brown faces a revolt from Labour MPs, as well as lots of Tories and Lib-Dems, representing English constituencies who fear that he is preparing to abandon the pledge to increase their powers. Soon after entering No 10 in June he announced his plans to establish nine select committees to monitor each of the English regions. Still the same old regions, but I guess we have to draw the lines somewhere.
We are now told that Harriet Harman, the Leader of the House, is understood to have serious doubts over the plans, believing that they could prove an expensive failure. She is now supporting more informal alternatives, similar to the grand committees used by Scottish and Welsh MPs to air relevant issues. Well my experience of those is that they are just Government “poodles”. They meet when ministers decide to discuss the minister’s own agenda and have no clear independence to hold the Government to account.
I think any attempt to water down the proposals will cause deep dismay amongst my Dorset colleagues and throughout England. Another “u-turn?”
Some months ago I encouraged readers to nominate local shops for the “Rural Retailer of the Year” award. The scheme is run by the Countryside Alliance and is open any local business serving a rural community. Well some of you must have been sending in your nominations, because two local shops have made it to the regional (South West again !!) finals.
Turnbulls, the delicatessen and restaurant in Shaftesbury and Robin Hill Stores in Marnhull are now in with a strong chance of winning the national crown. Good luck to both of them and its more than my job’s worth to pick the winner. But both businesses deserve their place in the regional finals, and we will all be cheering for them.
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Posted by George Counsell, 10:21, Sat 10 November 2007: (Is this post abusive?) #
I am not sure that I quite agree with your assessment that their is no homogeneity amongst the residents of the South West. We are mainly rural communities who rely on tourism as well as agriculture as the basis of our local economy, this does give us a common interest.
However I do agree that the answer is not unelected assemblies, nor more grand committees.
Just because I do feel that I come from a fairly homogeneous west country community does not mean I think we need another tier of local government, what I would like is a sensible answer to the West Lothian question.