The coalition government’s Localism Bill is inconsistent and restrictive for local government: ministers are actually legislating for a confusing mix of new central controls and only minor local ‘freedoms’

The proposed Localism Bill is touted by the government as a way of putting more power in the hands of communities and local people. On the surface, it will also give local authorities more freedom over their funding, through the removal of ring-fenced grants. However, as David Walker explains, councils will still be subject to top-down diktats and will be denied badly-needed fiscal devolution at the local level.