Peter Facey (London, Unlock Democracy): The Conservative party is correct to be concerned about local control and accountability: but this is the wrong way to go about it. Whilst David Cameron's latest proposals appear to be about giving power to local communities, in practice they would just replace a national cap on council tax increases with a nationally set threshold after which a referendum must be called. This is hardly a step forward.
The real priorities for reviving local government are devolution of powers, financial autonomy and fair votes to ensure that councils are representative of the people they serve. Cameron should be concentrating on these first of all before looking at other reforms.
Citizenship engagement at a local level is an exciting area that political parties should explore. We were delighted with the Conservative Party's help in getting the Sustainable Communities Act, through Parliament for example. But having national governments impose referendums on local communities is about centralised control, not engagement
