Mark Cook

The Chancellor didn’t tell us much more than we already knew about the new Government’s plans for infrastructure over this Parliament and it seems that the Government isn't entirely sure about how infrastructure investment will be spent over the next five years.

I wrote a short piece after the Scottish independence referendum in which I made the case for “A United Kingdom Act” to describe what binds us together.

Over the past 30 years we have worked with local authorities, community groups, developers, housing associations and indeed the Government itself, often engaging in official programmes.

The Secretary of State hailed the December 2015 announcement of a historic settlement for town halls, gushing about a new era of long-term financial certainty for councils and more resources for adult social care.

All is not healthy with Social Care, nor will it get better Councils responsible for social care will now be able to levy a social care ‘precept’ of up to 2% on council tax.

Underpinning it all are the “Treaty of Rome” fundamental principles of transparency, equal treatment and non-discrimination, proportionality and mutual recognition.

  The diamond: this is not just about seven metropolitan unitary councils getting together but the scope for expansion to, and development in, a wider area of local authorities currently covered by three Local Enterprise Partnerships.

But that is exactly where we are, with the Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, announcing the Government’s plan for a new City Devolution Bill in a speech delivered in Manchester.