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A few weeks ago the National Housing Federation complained that there was a danger that aspects of the new Government’s planning policies risked becoming a ‘NIMBY’s charter’. Then, last week, the Rural Coalition was vocal in questioning the high 80% threshold proposed for the ‘community right to build’ – because a very small number of […]

Change requires consultation – we all know this. It is one of the reasons why public engagement is so important in these days of deficit-reduction and massive organisational upheavals. But other conditions also place a premium on the ability of people and bodies to maintain a reasonable dialogue. They include those situations when different entities

Whilst we were all anxiously awaiting the ‘advent’ of the real Localism Bill, how many of us noticed the introduction of the Christmas (Localism in action) Regulations? Under these liberating new arrangements, Councils will, henceforth, be able to make whatever arrangements they like concerning Christmas. Ministers argue that we have suffered greatly from a top-down

In the coming months, as the Police Reform Bill goes through Parliament, we will hear a lot about the pros and cons of placing England’s 41 Chief Constables under the direction of an elected politician. The proposals aren’t new, and have been subject to a recent consultation. This revealed anxieties that the new Police and