There’s a new ministerial team at the levelling up department just as the whole levelling up concept comes under question. Richard Harbord examines the biographies of the ministers and discusses the issues they need to resolve.
The ministerial team at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) has now been finalised, so what should we expect from the new ministers and what challenges do they face?
There is always the hope that the appointees will be those with experience of local authorities and understand the issues and concerns raised. The new secretary of state (Simon Clarke) is a former local government minister, but only for a short time. Some of his ministerial team were previously councillors, but wider experience at the department is lacking.
There is a formidable agenda of urgent matters which they need to deal with. It is said that there are 47 consultation papers where consultation has closed but no government response has been given. There is also a major consultation on the Local Government Pension Scheme promised, while the whole concept of levelling up seems to be in question following a mini-budget that favoured better-off homeowners (who predominantly live in the south of England).
Guarded welcome
Clarke’s appointment as secretary of state was given a guarded welcome across the sector. He was local government minister for just over six months in 2020 and was a supporter of policies for devolution and regeneration at that time.
His last post was chief secretary to the Treasury. On the one hand, it has been said that this will help release additional resources, but, on the other hand, while in his previous role and speaking at the LGA Conference this year, Clarke very strongly said that councils must prioritise and manage within their existing budgets in the face of rising costs as a result of inflation.
He has been an advocate for a “disciplined approach to the public finances” and was very enthusiastic about local government reorganisation, which he saw as bringing efficiency savings.
Clarke is MP for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, a “red wall” seat, and he thus should have a good grasp of what levelling up means.
Clarke strongly believes in the reform of council tax and in December 2020 he was part of a group of 30 MPs who urged the government to overhaul the “regressive system“ and embrace a wider rethink on property taxes.
The whole concept of levelling up seems to be in question following a mini-budget that favoured better-off homeowners (who predominantly live in the south of England).
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From BEIS to DLUHC
The minister of state is Paul Scully. He was appointed to this post on 7 July 2022 and minister for London on 13 February 2020. He was previously parliamentary under secretary of state at the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS). Scully is a London MP and was first elected in 2015. He had been a Conservative councillor at Sutton Council from 2006 to 2010.
Scully’s area of responsibility covers local government policy and finance, including the Office for Local Government (details of which are still to be revealed), building safety, including all issues around Grenfell, and climate change.
Lee Rowley is the housing minister. This is not an enviable position. He will be the 13th housing minister since 2010 and the fourth in 2022.
Like Scully, Rowley was previously at BEIS, where he was the minister for industry. Although Rowley represents North East Derbyshire, he has been a councillor at Westminster City Council. In his constituency he was involved in a campaign to stop fracking. As well as housing strategy and Homes England, Rowley will have responsibility for planning and “corporate matters”.
Lee Rowley is the housing minister. This is not an enviable position. He will be the 13th housing minister since 2010 and the fourth in 2022.
‘Reliable and effective’
Andrew Stephenson has been appointed as parliamentary under secretary of state. He was previously chairman of the Conservative Party and minister without portfolio at the Cabinet Office between July and September 2022. Prior to that he had been minister of state at both Transport and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
Stephenson will take on responsibilities for homelessness and rough sleeping, refugee housing, social housing, supporting families, the private rented sector and electoral integrity.
Writing on Twitter, Clarke described Stephenson as “one of the most reliable, effective people in Parliament with a great track record of delivery”.
Dehenna Davison was appointed on 7 September as a parliamentary under secretary of state. This is her first ministerial role.
Her responsibilities cover the design and simplification of local growth funding, delivery of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, the Levelling Up Fund, the Community Ownership Fund and other funding initiatives, plus devolution and county deals and planning casework.
The final appointment is Baroness Scott of Bybrook as parliamentary under secretary of state. Previously a whip, she has responsibility for integration, communities and faith, including Hong Kong, local resilience and emergencies, the Covid-19 inquiry, planning casework and departmental work for the Lords.
Delivery deadline
That is the complete ministerial team. The difficulty they face, as do the whole Cabinet, is managing to effectively deliver before the next election. Political commentators are suggesting the election could be anytime between May 2023 and May 2024.
Turmoil in the markets following chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng’s mini-budget adds to the uncertainty. As does the announcement that a further “fiscal event” will take place on 23 November (with a report from the Office for Budget Responsibility).
Outstanding issues to be resolved include whether the work on Fair Funding is to re-started, what changes to business rates are to be made, the future for the existing Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill following the chancellor’s announcement of a new Planning and Infrastructure Bill, the role of the Office for Local Government and the impact of investment zones on councils.
Local authorities will be looking for some clarity as to when the local government settlement will be and what will be its duration. The previous secretary of state, Michael Gove, promised a two-year funding settlement when he addressed the LGA in June. But I suspect there is little chance of anything more than a one-year settlement this winter, especially following the announcement that the planned autumn spending review has been cancelled.
Local government can expect the uncertainty to continue for some time to come.
Richard Harbord is the former chief executive of Boston, Richmond and Hammersmith & Fulham councils.
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