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Local Authority round-up 01/05/20

Our Local Authority round up provides brief summaries of topical information on a weekly basis, to keep you aware of the changes and updates relevant to you.

Brexit

EU Select Committee appoints new sub-committees to reflect UK’s changed relationship with the EU

On 23 April 2020, the House of Lords EU Select Committee published an article setting out a new structure to reflect the UK’s changed relationship with the EU. The new structure, which involves a reduction from six to four EU facing sub-committees, sits alongside a revised terms of reference agreed by the House of Lords. It is designed to help the Committee scrutinise the Government’s policies and actions in respect of the EU, including the conduct of negotiations on the UK-EU relationship and its implementation of the withdrawal agreement and to consider EU proposals in detail. The four EU facing sub-committees are the EU Environment Sub-Committee, the EU Goods Sub-Committee, the EU Security and Justice Sub-Committee and the EU Services Sub-Committee. The Committee has also established an International Agreements Sub-Committee to scrutinise all new international agreements, or treaties, negotiated and concluded by the UK Government with countries and organisations other than the EU.

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House of Commons Library publishes article on extending transition period

The House of Commons Library has published an article; Coronavirus: Is it possible to extend the Brexit transition period?, which sets out the legal and procedural hurdles in the withdrawal agreement and in UK domestic law, to any extension of the post-Brexit transition period. It notes that the coronavirus pandemic has affected the negotiations between the Government and the EU, which has led some to consider the desirability of an extension. The article notes that a one-off extension to the transition period is possible however, such an extension can be for no more than two years and it would need to be agreed by a decision of the joint UK-EU committee before 1 July 2020. The UK and EU would need to agree both the length of an extension and other terms, such as the UK’s financial contribution to the EU budget for the extended period. The Government has so far been opposed to any extension. The article notes that under section 15A of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 UK ministers are prohibited from agreeing to an extension of the transition period in the joint committee therefore, if the Government wanted to agree to an extension, it would first need to make sure that section 15A was repealed, which would mean having to pass a further Act of Parliament. Section 15A does not prevent a minister from discussing or proposing an extension of the transition period. If an extension were agreed, Parliament would need to pass a further Act to change the definition of IP completion day, which is currently defined in section 39 of the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020 as 31 December 2020 at 11.00 pm (UK time). Parliament will also face an issue if it needed to debate and approve legislation during the current coronavirus pandemic. On 16 April 2020, the House of Commons announced plans for a hybrid chamber. The physical chamber would be limited to 50 or so socially-distanced MPs, but a further 120 MPs would be able to participate virtually to question ministers. At present, these arrangements would not allow MPs to vote remotely on a motion or on legislation. Only those physically present, or who have a proxy, could register a vote.

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Progress made in post-Brexit trade talks is “disappointing”

The EU’s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, has said that “genuine progress” and a decision on whether to extend the transition period were both needed by June and that progress which has been made to date on post-Brexit trade talks between the UK and EU has been disappointing. Following last week’s talks, which took place via video-conferencing due to coronavirus, Mr Barnier said there were four areas where progress was “disappointing”, including the level playing field, justice and fisheries. He said that a joint decision would be taken on 30 June about whether to extend the transition period. However the UK Government has already said that it will not extend the transition period if no agreement is reached. A UK spokesperson said that the EU’s offer on goods trade “falls well short of recent precedent in FTAs (free trade agreements) it has agreed with other sovereign countries” and that it “remains committed to a deal with a free trade agreement at its core.”

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Commercial

Amending and extending contracts affected by the Covid-19 outbreak

The three Procurement Policy Notes issued by the Cabinet Office provide, amongst other helpful information, useful guidance to authorities to enable them to procure goods, services and works in the urgent situation created by the Covid-19 outbreak, to ensure service continuity both during and after the outbreak and to support at risk suppliers so that they are in a position to resume normal delivery once the outbreak is over.

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Funding allocations for councils have been confirmed

Following Local Government Secretary Robert Jenrick’s announcement of £1.6 billion in additional funding for councils, individual councils in England have now had their funding allocations confirmed. The funding will be distributed to councils across England based on their population and the latest assessment on the challenges they are facing and will be based on a per capita basis. There will be a 65:35 split between county and district authorities and where there are separate fire authorities a specific tier split for fire of 3% will be used. Mr Jenrick said “Today I’m setting out how the latest £1.6 billion of this will be allocated to councils in the fairest way possible, recognising the latest and best assessment of the pressures they face. We are backing local district councils and a clear majority will receive at least £1m in additional funding.”

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LGA says councils need more funding

Cllr James Jamieson of the Local Government Association (LGA) has suggested that the £3.2 billion in funding which has been provided by the Government may only be enough to give councils “breathing space” and that they could require an additional £12.8 billion to cope with coronavirus. Ministers has previously told councils to spend whatever it took to deal with the pandemic but the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has now refused to offer the sector any guarantees that it will fully meet extra costs to councils and compensate for lost income in order to avoid the issuing of Section 114s. The LGA has demanded a ‘rock-solid’ written commitment for the Government to cover all extra costs incurred by councils but ministers said they have nothing further to add at this stage.

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Councils given power to move free entitlements funding

The Government has confirmed that councils will temporarily be able to move around Government funding for free childcare entitlements in exceptional circumstances. This means that they can use the funding they receive for the free entitlements for two, three and four-year-olds in order to redistribute to make sure sufficient childcare places are available for vulnerable children and those of critical workers, when their usual arrangements are no longer possible as a result of coronavirus. New guidance will be published to support councils with the steps they will need to take if moving around Government funding between settings. Children’s Minister Vicky Ford said “Councils are best placed to respond to the childcare needs in their area, so it’s right that we give them extra support to face these unprecedented challenges. They can use flexibility to redistribute entitlements funding in exceptional cases where other options have been exhausted, helping nurseries and other settings stay open and making sure enough childcare places are available.”

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Regulatory

Councils urged to make changes for safer exercising

Under current Government guidance people are allowed to leave their homes to exercise in the local area. However, it has been noted that this is not always safe for people who are cycling and therefore Cycling UK are now urging councils to implement new measures to make it easier for cyclists to abide by social distancing rules during lockdown. It has suggested that councils could put in place cones and planters to create temporary and wider cycling lanes and close residential streets to provide a safer environment for cyclists. Dr Rachel Lee, policy and research manager at Living Streets, said “This pandemic is making us all realise how much public space is given over to individual car use rather than walking and cycling. Filtered neighbourhoods, banning cars from certain roads and tackling pavement parking can all help make our daily exercise easier and safer.”

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Councils praised for reopening parks

Following a request from the Communities Secretary, Robert Jenrick, last week for councils to reopen parks, more than 340 parks and green spaces have reopen across the country in the last week. A survey by the National Federation of Parks and Green Spaces has revealed that of 90% of Friends of Parks groups, which help maintain parks across the UK, have reported that all parks in their area remain open, while in areas with some closures they report that 90% of local parks are open. Mr Jenrick said that parks should reopen to allow people to go outside to exercise while maintaining social distancing measures and he welcomed the reopening of parks saying “I’m grateful for the work of councils who have ensured, ahead of this weekend, that most parks across England are now open and cemeteries and graveyards in their area are also open for visitors. We’ll continue to work closely with them to try to get the remaining parks open soon, wherever possible.”

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Councils urged to reopen recycling sites

Local government secretary Robert Jenrick has asked councils to reopen household waste recycling plants as a priority to ensure waste can be controlled during the coronavirus pandemic. Many waste sites were closed following the social distancing guidance issued by the Government. A spokesperson for the County Councils Network said “Councils would like to have kept recycling centres open during this period. However, Government guidance was clear that a journey to household waste recycling centre was not considered essential travel, so councils rightly prioritised maintaining essential kerbside collections which the public rely on.” However Mr Jenrick said that the reopening should now be a priority to help cope with demand and said the Government would “be publishing guidance shortly to support them to [reopen] in line with social distancing guidelines.”

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Planning and housing

Social landlords asked to only allow essential home moves

Social housing landlords have been asked to pause any non-urgent house moves to help limit the spread of coronavirus. The Government has published guidance outlining how only urgent moves should be carried out at the moment to support the most vulnerable. This includes moving those fleeing domestic violence, people leaving temporary accommodation and those leaving hospital. Housing minister, Christopher Pincher, said “Wherever possible councils and housing associations should continue to support those fleeing abusive relationships or leaving hospital after an illness – to move into decent and more settled homes. By doing this we will not only help vulnerable people into settled homes but we can also free up more hospital beds and save lives during this pandemic.”

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Council-owned housing companies plan more new homes

A survey by the National Federation of ALMOs has found that the lifting of the Housing Revenue Account cap has helped council-owned housing companies increase their new-build housing targets by 70% in the past year. It found that those companies are planning to build 12,352 homes over the next five years which is an increase from 7,267 in December 2018. Eamon McGoldrick, managing director of the National Federation of ALMOs, said “While it’s impossible to say whether they will now be able to fulfil those targets, the figures show that these council-owned companies already have the experience and the ambition to dramatically scale up building of affordable rented housing, if they get the right support.”

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Councils call for extension to spend Right to Buy money

Due to the current coronavirus pandemic, which has impacted housebuilding and reduced the ability to build houses, councils are calling for more time to spend money from Right to Buy sales. Under current guidance councils must spend receipts from Right to Buy sales within three years. However, given that housebuilding has been halted, it will be difficult for councils to spend that money to build new social homes and if they are unable to spend it in that time then the money must be returned to the Government. Cllr David Renard, the LGA’s housing spokesman, said “Money generated through Right to Buy sales is vital in enabling councils to replace sold homes.” The LGA is now calling on the Government to extend the current three year period so councils do not lose that money and can continue to build social housing once house building can restart.

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If you have any questions about the issues raised in this update, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Please note that this briefing is designed to be informative, not advisory and represents our understanding of English law and practice as at the date indicated. We would always recommend that you should seek specific guidance on any particular legal issue.

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