Local Authority round-up 20/03/20

Brexit

Coronavirus puts Brexit talks on hold

Brexit talks, which were due to resume on Wednesday, have now been put on hold due to the coronavirus outbreak. A UK Government spokesman said “Both sides remain fully committed to the negotiations and we remain in regular contact with the European Commission to consider alternative ways to continue discussions, including looking at the possibility of video conferencing or conference calls, and exploring flexibility in the structure in the coming weeks. We expect to share a draft FTA (Free Trade Agreement) alongside the draft legal texts of a number of the standalone agreements in the near future still, as planned.” Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab told MPs that he did not expect that the Brexit transition period would need to be extended because of the virus.

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EU drafts post-Brexit trade deal proposal

Last week the EU sent its post-Brexit trade deal proposal to the 27 EU states. The draft legal text, called the “New Partnership between the European Union and the United Kingdom”, was drawn up by the European Commission. It was expected that it would then be presented to the UK this week but due to talks being put on hold this has not been possible. The document consists of 441 pages and covers areas such as security, foreign policy and fisheries. Proposals include a joint partnership council with 16 subcommittees, including one dedicated to the so-called “level playing field,” level playing field proposals on competition, taxation, labour and social protection, and the environment, long term agreements over access to British waters for EU boats, with annual negotiations and co-operation on data exchange and extradition, if the UK continues to implement the European Convention on Human Rights. It is expected that most of the proposals will be rejected by the UK as they reference EU law and the UK Government has already said it would not accept any alignment with EU laws as they are updated.

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Commercial

Government confirms support for councils on coronavirus

Local Government Secretary Rt Hon Robert Jenrick MP has confirmed that the Government stands ready to do whatever is necessary to support councils in their response to coronavirus as he addressed 300 council leaders in England.  He said that the Government is commitment to supporting councils to focus their efforts on the priority area of social care, providing vital support for vulnerable people and supporting their local economies and that they would be introducing practical measures which will give councils greater flexibility and allow them to further focus their resources on the response to the pandemic.  This includes confirming changes so that councils will be able to use their discretion on deadlines for Freedom of Information requests, extending the deadline for local government financial audits to 30 September 2020 and consideration being given to legislate changes to remove the requirement for annual council meetings to take place in person and to allow council committee meetings to be held virtually for a temporary period.

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£1.2 million funding for digital technology projects

Six councils across England will receive a share of £1.2 million of Government funding to develop innovative digital projects to improve public services.  Each of the six councils will receive a grant of up to £350,000 to lead projects working in partnership with fourteen other councils to develop tools which will benefit all councils.  They will work together in order to push forward projects which use digital technology to deliver public service such as housing repairs and the planning process.  Local Government Minister Simon Clarke MP said “Digital technology has enormous potential to benefit society and improve our lives in countless ways and I am determined that councils harness its potential too.  That is why I have announced £1.2 million for councils to continue their work on truly innovative projects to improve public services for people across the country.”

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Air Quality Grant for councils to tackle air pollution

The Government has announced £2.2 million of funding under it’s Air Quality Grant in order for councils to improve air quality.  The money will be used to fund innovative council projects to encourage active and cleaner transport and reduce harmful emissions outside schools.  It will also fund campaigns which encourage more active transport through education, awareness, and the creation and improvement of cycling and pedestrian routes.  Environment Minister Rebecca Pow said “The projects supported by this latest round of funding demonstrate how local authorities can deliver innovative solutions for their communities, and we’ll be working with them closely to offer ongoing support.”

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Regulatory

Wales cracks down on single-use plastics

The Welsh Government has announced plans to restrict single-use, hard to recycle and commonly littered plastics including Plastic straws, cutlery and polystyrene food containers in a bid to cut down on plastic pollution.  The proposed new measures will be put to a consultation over the coming months.  Deputy minister for housing and local government, Hannah Blythyn, said “It is vital we don’t throw away our future – which is why we believe taking this direct action will have a significant impact on changing people’s behaviour and make them think about their waste when “on-the-go”.  The measures I am announcing today are part of a range of potential solutions to the plastic problem.”

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Calls for council tax to be reformed

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) are calling for the Government to reform the current council tax arrangements calling the current system “highly regressive.”  IFS carried out research, which was funded by the IFS’s Local Government Finance and Devolution Consortium and the Nuffield Foundation, which found that the current arrangements were “increasingly arbitrary and unfair” as they are based on relative property values in 1991 and do not reflect the current values of those properties.  They calculated that if properties were revalued based on values in the first quarter of 2019, and Government funding for councils adjusted to account for this, average bills would fall in the Midlands and North and much of the South West, and increase in London.  Stuart Adam, a senior research economist at the IFS said “The failure to revalue council tax for almost 30 years means the tax bills households face bear less and less relation to the values of their properties.  At a minimum the Government should therefore revalue properties and put in place a cycle of regular and frequent revaluations to stop us getting in this situation again. Ideally it would undertake more radical reform too.”

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Planning and housing

Help to Buy homeowners receive payment holidays

The Government has announced that mortgage lenders will agree to provide payment holidays for Help to Buy customers who are paying interest on their Equity Loans due to the outbreak of coronavirus.  Equity Loans are interest free for the first five years so it will apply to anyone who took out the loan before 31 March 2015.  Help to Buy Director Will German at Homes England said “We will do all we can to support Help to Buy customers through this unprecedented period of economic uncertainty.  Like other lenders, we will offer payment holidays for those who are struggling to pay interest fees on their equity loans.  We will also offer a range of flexible payment options to defer interest payment for a period. In all cases, we will seek to support households in difficulty.”

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Government bans evictions

The Government has announced emergency legislation which will suspend new evictions from social or private rented accommodation due to the outbreak of coronavirus.  Under the legislation, landlords will not be able to start proceedings to evict tenants for at least a three month period in order to prevent anyone being evicted due to the current pandemic.  The Government also confirmed that landlords can claim a three month mortgage payment holiday where they are not receiving rent due to tenants facing financial difficulties due to coronavirus.  At the end of the three month period tenants and landlords are expected to agree an affordable repayment plan.  Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick MP said “The Government is clear – no renter who has lost income due to coronavirus will be forced out of their home, nor will any landlord face unmanageable debts.”

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Emergency funding for rough sleepers

Communities Secretary Rt Hon Robert Jenrick MP has announced £3.2 million in emergency support to enable rough sleepers to self-isolate in order to prevent the spread of coronavirus.  The funding is available to all councils in England in order to reimburse them for the costs of providing accommodation and service to anyone staying in night shelters, assessment hubs or sleeping on the streets and who needs to self-isolate.  Public Health England has also issued guidance for providers of hostels and day centres to help them handle the impact of the virus.  In announcing the funding Mr Jenrick said “The initial funding that I’ve announced today will ensure councils are able to put emergency measures in place to help some of the most vulnerable people in our society to successfully self-isolate.”

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