Giving power back to Citizens - Localism Bill receives Royal Assent - 16/11/11

This week the Localism Bill received Royal Assent.

This radical Act will fundamentally shake up the balance of power in this country. It overturns decades of central government interference and gives power back to citizens, community groups and local councils. It breaks the monopoly on all new policy initiatives having to come from Whitehall by giving a new right of initiative to people in their local areas.

A summary of key provisions in the Act are listed below. Moreover, to accompany the Act, the Government has updated the ‘plain English guide’ that was produced to accompany the Bill.
www.communities.gov.uk/publications/localgovernment/localismplainenglishupdate

In the coming weeks and months the measures in the Localism Act will begin to come into effect, and the Government expects many of the measures to be in place by April 2012.

Bob Neill MP said:

“I am immensely pleased that we have managed to get this landmark piece of legislation onto the statute books so early on in this Parliament.  It will, without doubt, trigger the biggest downward transfer of power in a generation and give residents in Bromley & Chislehurst real powers to shape our local area.  The Localism Act is by no means the end of the journey towards a more decentralised system, but it makes great strides in the direction that this Government will continue to travel.”