Sir Michael says councils should have more freedom

Sir Michael Lyons, whose inquiry also covers the role of local government, says there should be fewer national targets for local councils.

Voters wanted councillors who could make a difference, he warned.

Sir Michael said he had not yet decided how to reform council tax but signalled that he thought ministers' powers to cap rises in the tax should end.

His full report will be published in December and he is urging Whitehall to devolve more power.

He wants councils to be able to have a "place shaping" role, including being able to ensure their high streets look different, with local shops protected against supermarkets.

He also suggested that more planning decisions should be taken at local level to boost public trust.

Culture shift

Sir Michael said ministers had themselves become "overloaded" with responsibilities and powers.

"If you think through the last few weeks, you would at least question the proposition that a centrally-run initiative is always the best thing and you would be clear that ministers are overloaded and have too many responsibilities," he told reporters.

Sir Michael is continuing to look at council tax options

Sir Michael refused to name which central government targets for local councils should be scrapped.

There had been great improvements in local public services in recent years, he said.

But councils were spending too much time "looking up" to what ministers wanted rather than focusing on their own citizens' needs and wishes, he argued.

Supermarkets

Business groups fear Sir Michael is gearing up to recommend returning business rates, which are currently set by central government, to the control of local councils. He insisted he had made no decisions on such funding issues but said he was looking at calls for "greater local discretion over business rates".

Sir Michael said there was also a "sting in the tail" in his report for local councillors, who had to be more energetic in "place shaping" - building aspirations in their own communities.

People were attracted to towns and high streets which were distinctive.

Britons found Italy and France exciting because there were many more places which seemed different, he said.

Some councillors complain they are unable to stop supermarkets, particularly express stores, moving into their high streets.

Sir Michael said supermarkets could offer cheaper shopping and cater for a wider public but said there should be local debate on such issues.

"Why not have a greater freedom for a community to say: 'No, actually we're going to stick with this kind of shopping offer because we like it and we want to be different from other places'."

Reorganisation

He also pointed to evidence of public mistrust in the planning system.

Cases where planning decisions were decided by regional bodies or national government, rather than locally, should be kept to a minimum, he said.

Some decisions would have to be referred upwards because they affected a wider area but the background to those decisions had to be better explained.

Sir Michael's report comes ahead of government plans to change how local councils are organised later this year.

He said there were advantages to having single tier councils which provided all local services in each area.

But he warned ministers against opting for wholesale change, pointing out the costs in losing skilled staff and "disconnecting" with local people.

Capping powers

Sir Michael's findings on reforms to the council tax are keenly awaited, although he says the work continues.

Ministers have capped council tax rises in some areas in recent years and Sir Michael acknowledged that local people facing excessive increases looked to central government for protection.

But capping looked "increasingly idiosyncratic", he said.

"Where communities would be content to have a higher taxation level, can afford a higher taxation level but are not allowed to do so is an extraordinary outcome."