Why we can’t, and won’t, run everything from the centre

Call it localism, devolution, self-determination or whatever you like, it is clear the English people want to have more of a say over what happens where they live and work. I see it in the energy, dynamism and innovation of communities and locally elected representatives up and down the country who understand that, in this new world, we can and must take more decisions for ourselves. Why is this happening? Because too many people feel they’re not being listened to and that change happens to them rather than being shaped by them. And, to an extent, they’re right.

We can’t run everything from the centre, there’s less money about and there is now a thirst for change. There are, of course, some things that only Westminster can do, but there are lots of others where it makes sense to pass power back. Doing so isn’t easy for a party that seeks to win power to do good everywhere, but we are changing. The last time we were in government Labour gave the people of Scotland, Wales and London the chance to take more control over their own futures, and the task for the next Labour government is to finish the job. We will be fighting an election to win power in order to give it away across England; returning money and responsibility to communities that come together to say, “we think we can do this better locally than you can from Whitehall.”

That’s why Ed Miliband recently announced that we want local communities to make more decisions about transport investment; the madness of plans to improve local transport requiring Whitehall approval must end. And If the capital can run its buses, then why can’t Manchester, Leeds, Cornwall or Kent?

Skills are vital to our future prosperity, so who better to decide what the needs are in an area than the people who are locally elected, working with industry, businesses, schools and colleges? Labour will give local authorities the budgets for skills and education for people aged 19 and over to focus investment where it is required.

And when it comes to helping the long-term unemployed back into work, the evidence shows local authorities can do a better job than the government’s failed Work Programme, so we will ask councils to organise its successor.

Or take housing. We all know that we need to build homes for our children and grandchildren but far too often communities feel alienated by the planning process in which developers seem to be in control. The new deal we will offer is this: as communities take responsibility for making sure the homes they need are built, in return we will give them the power to make sure the type of homes they want are built in the places they decide.

Ed Miliband has made it clear that we will have to make tough choices on spending, so we will need to make best use of the money we have. That’s why we will take £30bn out of Whitehall and give it to local authorities that work together as city or county regions or combined authorities, as is already happening in Liverpool, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, the North East and Greater Manchester, with Birmingham and the Black Country to follow shortly. What’s more, we will give these combined authorities full control of any increase in business rate income, so they can help grow their local economy.

You could call all this English powers for English places: villages, towns and cities joining together in city and county regions because they see the advantages in co-operation.

George Osborne thinks he can try and change the Tories’ image by offering cash and some powers to one city, but communities up and down the country – including Manchester – which have seen their funding cut have much longer memories than that. They know that he has taken more funding away from the most deprived communities, and that tells you a lot about the character of the chancellor. His approach is completely unfair, piecemeal and, frankly, unambitious.

By contrast, our offer is to devolve three times as much money – to all parts of England, including our great counties. Labour’s general election manifesto will commit to a radical English Devolution Act and a new English Regional Cabinet Committee, chaired by the prime minister and attended by secretaries of state and council leaders.

I believe that if we give back to the people of England the tools they need, then they will do the job. That is the true character of our nation. The England of the Victorians didn’t wait for Mr Disraeli to tell them what to do, they got on with it. And if they could do that then, there is no reason at all why we can’t do it now.

Hilary Benn is Shadow Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government