Colin Copus - In Defence of Councillors

Manchester University Press

Copyright Colin Copus 2016

The right of Colin Copus to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

Published by Manchester University Press

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ISBN 978 0 7190 8832 2 hardback

First published 2016

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It has long been my aim to write a book that celebrated all those who put themselves through the agonies and ecstasies of election to the office of councillor. The purpose for doing so was partly to redress the balance between a decaying public image of the office and its holders, partly to give deserved public recognition to those that make often incalculable personal sacrifices to become and stay councillors, and partly to acknowledge the contribution councillors make not just to the governance of their communities but also to the governance of the country. But my main aim was to produce a work that reflects my long-held passion for local government, democracy and representation, a passion I know is shared by councillors everywhere.

The office of councillor is probably one of the most misunderstood, criticised and maligned of political positions; indeed many in government, the media and among the public would like to see fewer councillors. Yet, the office of councillor is one of the most fundamental political offices in any democracy, on which rest the (supposedly) higher offices of state. It is also an office which enables communities to govern themselves, as far as the centre will tolerate, and, even in highly centralised systems, it can provide the localities with a line of defence against any central power. But it is also a position from which councillors can co-operate with and work alongside any government for the betterment of their communities. It is an office that makes demands on its holders, not just politically, but personally, on their careers, families, friends, neighbours and on their personal and private time but, as this book shows, councillors give willingly of this time and do so knowing the personal costs it may entail.

Local government, particularly in England, is seen by central government as a mechanism for implanting its own policies and bringing about the social, economic, political and technological changes it wishes to introduce. In England, the centre also sees local government and councillors as somehow imperfectly formed, not quite right yet, in need of constant tinkering or wholesale overhaul. Thus, government will inquire, investigate, report, restructure and change the powers, functions, responsibilities, tasks, duties and expectations of local government and the office of councillor. The centre will be tempted to continue with this process of reform and reshaping until it feels as though it has finally got local government and councillors right or until the right to continually tinker or radically reform the office no longer rests with the centre. So, change and adapting to change is a constant part of what councillors need to do. And it is not just centrally inspired change with which they must cope. Other forces impact on local government and on the roles of the councillor; globalisation, urbanisation, Europeanisation, economic downturn, community assertiveness, political cynicism and the often cultural and religious fracturing of communities, all pose new challenges for councillors.

The dynamic and rapidly changing environment within which councillors operate means that they are faced with finding new and innovative solutions to new and challenging problems of public policy. But they have to do so knowing that, certainly within the English context, their room for political manoeuvre is limited and the capacity to govern their areas is also limited in nature. Councillors have few hard governing powers, so when dealing with complex networks of public and private bodies they require skills of compromise, persuasion and negotiation so as to draw those beyond the council into some shared agenda for the localitys future prosperity. At the same time, councillors need to hold a whole host of public bodies to account for the policies they develop, the actions they take and the money they spend. The political skills of negotiation, compromise, coalition and alliance building, persuasion and simple doggedness are at a premium for our councillors and it is these soft powers that are their main resource when governing their areas.

The councillor is, above all, a political (though not necessarily party political) representative who holds office through a political process and whose position and actions are legitimised by the public vote. Councillors not only engage in governing networks to attempt to influence and shape what others do, they are also elected representatives of an area within a larger area at least in the English context where councils are divided for electoral purposes into wards or divisions. The councillor needs to devote loyalty and operational activity to that ward or division, seeking to obtain resources for it, solve problems located within it, and deal with very specific problems and issues that arise from it. At the same time, councillors must balance the needs of that specific area with the overall needs of the council, reconciling local representation within a broader governing activity. Indeed, councillors live in close proximity with those they represent, govern and serve, and that proximity, that location of councillors within the communities from which they are elected, means that they are among the most accessible of politicians. Moreover, they also experience, first-hand, the outcomes of their own policy decisions or the policy decisions that government requires them to implement.

The life of the councillor is one big balancing act, or rather a constant process of reconciling competing pressures and demands, political and personal, and doing so while at the same time being under constant scrutiny from the local public and press and from higher levels of government.

Being a councillor has a profound effect on the private, public, family, work and social life of those elected to office. Yet, the support they receive for the various facets of their council work from the councils of which they are members is often inadequate and fails to recognise the demands made on elected members as politicians, case workers and local representatives. In addition, fear of being seen to be politically biased further limits the resources and support offered to councillors and places additional constraints on their room for manoeuvre. It is in closely observing how councillors operate under such constraints that a growing admiration develops of the work they undertake, of the commitment they display and of the achievements they secure.

This book has been a long time in the coming as my very patient publisher will no doubt testify. It did not result from any one research project; rather it was something that emerged, at least in the thought processes, very early on in my political rather than academic activities. I first stood for election as councillor in a double by-election in 1984 at the age of 25. In my election material of the time I added a couple of years to that age because I didnt think anyone would vote for someone in their mid-twenties. It didnt matter, because the voters saw through the ruse and I lost that by-election, although my good friend and colleague, Steve Timms (now a long-serving MP), did win one of the seats. I was finally elected for the same seat at the full council elections in 1986, when my party won every seat on the council and I polled the highest votes in the borough. (I never checked that particular piece of information I was given, just in case someone was having me on.) Anyway, after working solidly for almost four years to win the seat and become a councillor I hated every minute of it. But that didnt stop me being elected to a county council in 1993 and a district council in 1994. But on each council I was a one-term wonder worked hard to get elected but couldnt quite make it as a councillor although I did chair a major committee on the district council.