Systems of multilevel governance[1]

Representation:
The Local Government Association (LGA), the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA), the Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA) and the Northern Ireland Local Government Association (NILGA) represent the local authorities of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland respectively.

Information – consultation – coordination:

Coordination between the UK Government and the devolved administrations is managed by the Joint Ministerial Committee (JMC), which was created in order to:

• consider non-devolved matters which impinge on devolved responsibilities, and devolved matters which impinge on non-devolved responsibilities;
• consider devolved matters if it is beneficial to discuss their respective treatment in the different parts of the United Kingdom, where the UK Government and the devolved administrations so agree;
• keep the arrangements for liaison between the UK Government and the devolved administrations under review; and
• consider disputes between the administrations.

The JMC is a set of committees comprising ministers from the UK and devolved governments. It is a consultative body that initially held plenary meetings (including the first ministers of each administration and chaired by the Prime Minister) at least once a year, although generally speaking meetings have become less frequent over time. (One exception was the Joint Ministerial Committee on EU Negotiations, which met on a number of occasions prior to the UK leaving the EU.)  The JMC is a consultative, not an executive, body and its conclusions are not binding on any of its participants[2].

 

General principles and common working arrangements are laid down in a Memorandum of Understanding which has been revised on a number of occasions since the JMC was set up at the start of devolution in 1999; the latest version dates from October 2013[3].

 

Practical guidelines and arrangements for interaction are indicated in various “Concordats" (working documents which are not legally binding, but “binding in honour only"). There have been a mixture of overarching concordats concluded (such as the coordination of EU policy and implementation; financial assistance to industry; and international relations touching on the responsibilities of the devolved administrations), as well as numerous bilateral concordats concerning specific areas or interaction.

The principles and mechanics of the relationship between central and local government in England are stated in a non-binding text - the Central-Local Concordat of 12 December 2007 signed between Her Majesty's Government and the Local Government Association (LGA). This envisaged a renewed Central – Local Partnership (originally set up in 1997) through which regular high-level meetings would take place, and which would monitor the operation of the agreement. This partnership arrangement has since given way to more informal consultations[4]. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government is responsible for supporting local authorities.

In 2007 a Concordat was signed between the Scottish Government and the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA), which commits both the Scottish Government and the 32 Scottish councils to endorsing Single Outcome Agreements (SOAs), later known as Local Outcome Implementation Plans (LOIP). At local level, Community Planning Partnerships (CPPs)[5] are statutory bodies under Scottish local government law that bring together public bodies, voluntary organisations and businesses to agree on strategic priorities for their area, showing how those outcomes will contribute to the Scottish Government's overarching National Outcomes. CPPs were reviewed to help local authorities engage with their communities to develop and deliver better public services. Other partnerships include City Regions and Regional Economic Partnerships (REPs).  There have been further moves to devolve powers to the local and sub-local (known as community) level; the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 helps empower community bodies. A new National Performance Framework was launched jointly by the Scottish Government and COSLA in June 2018. The Scottish Government and COSLA are in the process of conducting a Local Governance Review.

Relations between the Welsh Government and local authorities – represented by the Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA) – were previously shaped by the 2008 Local Government Partnership Scheme. A new Partnership Scheme was adopted by the Local Government Partnership Council in October 2017[6].

The Northern Ireland Local Government Association (NILGA) represents collective interests in Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland also has Community Planning Partnerships[7].

The four local government jurisdictions of the UK are the only ones in the Council of Europe still not to have had the 1985 European Charter of Local Self-Government transposed into domestic legislation, despite several attempts to do so. A European Charter of Local Self Government Bill was tabled at the Scottish Parliament on May 2020 to try to remedy this with regard to Scotland.

[1] Council of European Municipalities and Regions, Consultation procedures within European States, 2007.

[2] Institute for Government:  https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainers/devolution-joint-ministerial-committee .

[3] Memorandum of Understanding and Supplementary Agreements between the United Kingdom Government, the Scottish Ministers, the Welsh Ministers, and the Northern Ireland Executive Committee, October 2013. http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/sites/default/files/resources/devolution-memorandum-of-understanding_0.pdf.

[4] Source: Local Government Association (LGA).

[5] https://www.gov.scot/policies/improving-public-services/community-planning/.

[6] https://gov.wales/local-government-partnership-scheme.

[7] https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/local-councils.