A bumper batch of bills includes many of interest to councils
The new Labour Government’s first legislative programme – announced in the King’s Speech on 17 July – contains 40 bills, 26 of which appear to be relevant to local government.
Described as ‘mission led’ and ‘based upon the principles of security, fairness and opportunity for all’, the speech includes a number of positive bills that have the potential to tackle some of the big issues we face as a nation, according to the LGA.
Councils hold the local levers to solve many of these national challenges, whether it is improving care for adults and children, boosting inclusive growth, improving life chances for all, or tackling climate change.
The new legislative agenda includes some encouraging signs that the Government recognises that, with the right powers and flexibilities, councils are critical to help it deliver its missions.
For councils to deliver, it is also crucial they have adequate long-term funding and more financial certainty through multi-year settlements.
The LGA and councils are committed to working closely with the Government on the details of proposals to ensure that, together, we can address the fundamental long-term challenges facing our communities and help them deliver on their priorities.
In light of the King’s Speech, and as first was going to press, the LGA Board and the LGA’s Executive Advisory Board were meeting to review the organisation’s approach and offer to working with the Government, to ensure the LGA’s priorities reflect the Government’s missions and other critical issues for our members.
Some of the key bills for local government are outlined below. More details are available in the LGA’s ‘King’s Speech 2024: on-the-day briefing’.
English Devolution Bill
The King said: “My Government believes that greater devolution of decision-making is at the heart of a modern dynamic economy and is a key driver of economic growth.”
The bill would:
- make devolution the default setting, with places granted additional powers (over strategic planning, local transport networks, skills, and employment support) without the need to negotiate agreements where they meet governance conditions
- introduce new powers and duties for local leaders to produce local growth plans
- create a strong new ‘right to buy’ for community assets, such as empty shops, pubs and community spaces.
Crime and Policing Bill
The King said: “Legislation will be brought forward to strengthen community policing, and give the police greater powers to deal with antisocial behaviour.”
The bill would:
- introduce new Respect Orders to tackle persistent adult offenders
- fast-track Public Spaces Protection Orders to tackle street drinking
- create a duty for local partners to cooperate on antisocial behaviour, with an antisocial behaviour lead in every local authority area
- strengthen the law to tackle those who exploit children for criminal purposes
- provide a stronger, specialist response to violence against women and girls.
Renters’ Rights Bill
The King said: “Legislation will be introduced to give greater rights and protections to people renting their homes, including ending no-fault evictions and reforming grounds for possession.”
The bill would:
- abolish Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions
- apply a Decent Homes Standard to the private rented sector
- create a digital private rented sector database that councils can use to target enforcement action
- support quicker, cheaper dispute resolution with a new ombudsman
- make it illegal for landlords to discriminate against tenants in receipt of benefits or with children
- make it easier for councils to identify and fine unscrupulous landlords.
Skills England Bill
The King said: “My Government will establish Skills England, which will have a new partnership with employers at its heart, and my ministers will reform the apprenticeship levy.”
The bill would:
- establish Skills England, bringing together business, providers, unions, mayoral combined authorities and national government
- Skills England would:
- develop a single picture of national and local skills needs
- identify the training for which the Growth and Skills Levy will be accessible
- ensure the national and regional skills systems are meeting skills needs and are aligned.
Better Buses Bill
The King said: “A bill will be introduced to allow local leaders to take control of their local bus services.”
The bill would:
- remove barriers that limit
- bus-franchising powers to metro mayors
- remove the ban on publicly owned bus companies
- provide more accountability over bus operators
- give local leaders more control and flexibility over bus funding.
Planning and Infrastructure Bill
The King said: “My ministers will get Britain building, including through planning reform, as they seek to accelerate the delivery of high-quality infrastructure and housing.”
The bill would:
- make improvements to the local planning system, modernising planning committees and increasing local planning authorities’ capacity
- accelerate housebuilding and infrastructure delivery by:
- simplifying the consenting process for major infrastructure projects
- further reforming compulsory purchase compensation
- using development to fund nature recovery – the Government will work with nature-delivery organisations, stakeholders and the sector over the summer to determine the best way forward.
Employment Rights Bill
The King said: “My Government is committed to making work pay and will legislate to introduce a new deal for working people to ban exploitative practices and enhance employment rights.”
The bill would:
- ban zero-hour contracts
- make parental leave, sick pay, protection from unfair dismissal and flexible working available from day one of a job
- make it unlawful to dismiss a woman who has had a baby for six months after her return to work
- establish a Fair Pay Agreement in the adult social care sector
- reinstate the School Support Staff Negotiating Body.
Children’s Wellbeing Bill
The King said: “A bill will be introduced to raise standards in education and promote children’s wellbeing.”
The bill would:
- strengthen multi-agency child protection and safeguarding arrangements
- require free breakfast clubs in every primary school
- create a duty on local authorities to have and maintain Children Not in School registers, and to provide support to home-educating parents
- provide Ofsted with stronger powers to investigate unregistered independent schools
- require all schools to cooperate with the local authority on school admissions, SEND inclusion, and place planning
- require all schools to teach the national curriculum, subject to a curriculum and assessment review.
Other key bills for councils
- Armed Forces Commissioner Bill – establishes a statutory Armed Forces Commissioner, with investigatory powers to act as a strong independent champion for armed forces personnel and their families.
- Budget Responsibility Bill – introduces a ‘fiscal lock’ to ensure any government making significant and permanent tax and spending changes will be subject to an independent assessment by the Office for Budget Responsibility.
- Digital Information and Smart Data Bill – includes plans for a National Underground Asset Register of buried pipes and cables, for use by planners and excavators.
- Draft Equality (Race and Disability) Bill – enshrines full right to equal pay for ethnic minorities and disabled people, and introduces mandatory ethnicity and disability pay reporting.
- Great British Energy Bill – establishes a publicly-owned energy production company, which will own, manage and operate clean-power projects.
- Mental Health Bill – modernises the Mental Health Act, including further limits on the detention and treatment of people with a learning disability and/or autistic people.
- Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Bill – requires those responsible for certain premises and events to take steps to mitigate the impact of a terrorist attack and reduce harm in the event of an attack occurring.
- Tobacco and Vapes Bill – introduces a progressive smoking ban to gradually end the sale of tobacco products, and includes powers to regulate the flavours, packaging and display of vapes and other nicotine products, and for enforcement authorities in England and Wales to issue fixed penalty notices for underage sales.
- Water (Special Measures) Bill – strengthens regulation and requires water companies to install real-time monitors at sewage outlets.