LGA calls for central government to be as transparent as councils

Central government must open itself up to the same level of public scrutiny as local authorities, council leaders have said.

In a letter to the Prime Minister, Baroness Margaret Eaton, chairman of the Local Government Association, warned that voters would not understand why different rules applied to different parts of the public sector about transparency.

The call comes after it was suggested salaries in local government of more than £100,000 would have to be approved by a full council vote, and that the names and job titles of people earning £58,000 and above should be published online. No such rules currently exist for other parts of the public sector such as the civil service or the NHS.

In her letter, Lady Eaton says:
“Councils understand that the Government has very clear priorities in respect of localism, and that ministers want to make the delivery of public services at every level more accountable through increased transparency and the opening up of data to the general public. We support these aims.

"That is why virtually all local councils have already responded positively to a request to publish spending over £500 online.”

On the suggestion that salaries of more than £100,000 would have to be approved by a full council vote, Lady Eaton said:

“We entirely endorse the emphasis the Government is placing on transparency and democratic accountability. Decisions on senior salaries are already taken in a democratically accountable way by politically proportionate committees within councils, and often by an independent remuneration committee. But we are far from persuaded that the Government’s proposals are truly decentralising.

“Even assuming that these transparency proposals are the best way to deliver openness and public accountability in respect of senior pay, we believe it is very surprising that the Government is not yet making parallel proposals for the same level of transparency and scrutiny in other parts of the public sector. We would argue that most voters would expect to see scrutiny by Parliament of the civil service it is responsible for funding.

“If the same principles are to apply across the board, we would hope to see a move to a whole parliamentary vote on any civil service salary in excess of £100,000. Given the non-statutory nature of the civil service, we believe this advance in transparency could be made immediately through an Order in Council, without the need for the kind of legislative change needed to impose it on councils.

“We would also like to know what further announcements can be expected about transparency and senior pay across the whole of the public sector, and when we might expect to hear from other Whitehall departments with regards to similar decisions around appointments to posts in the health service, criminal justice system, universities, and quangos. This is an important debate. If the public are to be truly well informed, they should be fully informed. Only then will they be able to form views based upon all facts rather than a partial picture.”