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What are the advantage of local government? |
| Answer» \tLocal authorities are able to adapt to local needs and react more quickly to local problems than central government. Councillors and officers have an understanding of the local area and can tailor policies to that area.\tIt is likely to be more efficient to run services locally than manage them from the centre. Local councils can also play an important role in coordination by bringing together the private sector, voluntary organisations and other public bodies to make sure that things happen.\tDifferent local authorities have been able to innovate and produce new ideas which can be copied by others. The idea of using a private firm for refuse collection at lower cost instead of the council’s own workforce was pioneered by the Conservative council in Southend and then adopted by the Thatcher Government. The Labour council in Lambeth is involving people with mental health issues in redesigning the services that they use.\tLocal government is closer to the public and allows them to have a more direct voice in the running of services. People can vote according to how well the council is run and councils can carry out local referendum and consultations to allow local people to express their views. Councillors live nearby and so it is easier for voters to see them.\tLocal government allows people from the political parties to gain experience in politics and gain knowledge of issues such as transport, education and social care.As well as becoming experienced local politicians they may become MPs and take their experience to Westminster.This provides an alternative to the path into national politics which involves working for an MP or political party and, it could be argued, produces people with more understanding of real world issues. | |