Fourth Report - Progress on devolution in England

Select Committee
Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee HC 36 1 October 2021
Report Status Government responded
Conclusions & Recommendations 23 items (22 recs)
Source View on Parliament website
Government Response (AI assessment · 23 of 23 classified)
Accepted 8
Accepted in Part 3
Deferred 2
Not Addressed 7
Rejected 3
Government response
Progress on Devolution in England: Government response to the Select Committee report · published 1 Mar 2022
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Recommendations & Conclusions

3 results
7 Recommendation Rejected
Para 61
We reiterate our recommendation from our recent report into local authority financial sustainability that the...
Recommendation
We reiterate our recommendation from our recent report into local authority financial sustainability that the Government should allow councils to retain 75% of business rates from 2022, and that it should not impose commensurate cuts to grant funding. The additional … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government rejects the recommendation to allow councils to retain 75% of business rates from 2022, stating that the system will remain unchanged for 2022/23. It commits to consulting on potential future funding reform but outlines past and existing measures for local authority finance.
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
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9 Recommendation Rejected
The Government should commission research into how income tax or other national tax revenue could...
Recommendation
The Government should commission research into how income tax or other national tax revenue could be allocated to local and combined authorities, or how a local income tax across a combined authority area could work, including details of tax setting, … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government rejects commissioning research into allocating national tax revenue or introducing a local income tax, stating it has no plans to hypothecate taxes. Regarding land value capture, it outlines existing mechanisms and plans for a new Infrastructure Levy, rather than permitting additional new measures.
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
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18 Recommendation Rejected
Para 139
There was a lack of consensus on the merits of moving to unitary authorities and...
Recommendation
There was a lack of consensus on the merits of moving to unitary authorities and resistance to making structural changes a condition of devolution. The combined authority model may not be appropriate in all places and should not be a … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government does not commit to commissioning a review of unitary authority structures, instead outlining its incremental approach to local government reorganisation and devolution, where reorganisation remains locally-led and not a requirement for deals.
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
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