Greater Birmingham and Greater Manchester should have elected, tax-raising mayors, according to new research published by the think-tank Institute for Public Policy Research's (IPPR) Centre for Cities, which says elected mayors should control spending on transport, regeneration, and skills.
The report recommends that England's two biggest "city-regions" should be in charge of their own economic development. It argues for around £1.2 billion a year to be devolved from Regional Development Agencies, Transport Boards, and the Learning and Skills Council. The report suggests this could be topped up by a five per cent levy on business rates, but that local government must first build a consensus with business over public spending priorities.
Citing Bilbao in Spain and Portland in the USA, the report goes on to explain that mayors, with tax raising and spending powers, can significantly improve economic performance and political accountability.
City Leadership: Giving City-Regions the Power to Grow, by Adam Marshall and Dermot Finch, is available at www.ippr.org/centreforcities.
The London Housing Federation predicts that London will have 280,000 extra cars by 2016, as the City's population will swell by 800,000 over the same period. However, the high cost of land in the capital means the majority of new housing developments will have limited parking.
The number of private parking spaces in London has remained the same since 1999. Meanwhile, in central London the number of restricted on-street parking spaces has fallen by 27% and the number of unrestricted on-street spaces has fallen by 9%. Experts predict parking will increasingly become a source of conflict between neighbours competing for limited spaces.
No Parking: Making Limited or Zero Parking Work on Higher Density Housing Schemes, published by the London Housing Federation, says London's increasing population density and lack of available space mean existing levels of car ownership are unsustainable.
The report shows that Londoners remain strongly attached to their cars. A survey of potential homebuyers in west London revealed that more than half would not buy a home with no parking provision. Of these, 53% said they might be tempted to give up their car if they lived close to good public transport. However, at present, dissatisfaction with public transport is high.
The report includes examples of how housing associations are promoting alternatives to car ownership. These include car clubs - where members can hire a car at a reasonable hourly rate - and car sharing.
Policy Exchange released the latest report from its series on housing. Better Homes, Greener Cities shows that too few houses are built in Britain because local communities have no incentives to support new development.
A poll conducted for the report by Populus reveals that, despite rising incomes, 75% of respondents believe a family home with a garden is less affordable than twenty years ago. Respondents overwhelmingly feel that planning should be controlled locally.
The report makes a number of proposals, including:
February releases in the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) Findings series included the following:
No. 86: Experiences of New Immigration at the Neighbourhood Level
Much is being said about immigration and asylum in the UK, but little is actually known about the experiences and consequences of new immigration at the neighbourhood level. This review of the evidence from the Centre for Regional Economic and Social Research at Sheffield Hallam University represents a first step toward understanding the hidden experiences of newly arrived immigrants, who are experiencing social and economic disadvantage.
No. 106: Decent Homes Standards and Accessibility
The Decent Homes Standard sets Government targets for social housing in England on a range of issues, but does not specifically include any requirements about the accessibility of properties. This study considered the approach of six English housing associations with large refurbishment programmes following the transfer of previously council-owned stock. It looked at whether there had been a missed opportunity in terms of improving accessibility and whether there was any evidence that accessibility had actually been made worse by the works that had been carried out.
Findings and other reports from the Foundation can be read on its website at www.jrf.org.uk.