Local Government Changes
Many vital measures of social reconstruction in the near future will depend on the efficiency with which local authorities can play their part in administration, and these cannot be postponed till the whole system of local' government has been made the subject of drastic inquiry and reform. Recognising, however, that changes must be made, and quickly, the Government has proposed to set up a Boundary Commission with executive powers to change the status and boundaries of certain types of local authority. A valuable guide to the principles that should be applied by the Commission has been prepared by three ex-Lord Mayors—Lord Astor, Sir E. D. Simon and Mr. A. W. S. Burgess—in a pamphlet entitled Local Govern- ment Areas. It is rightly urged that the new body should use its powers in a bold and constructive manner, so that local authorities can fulfil their proper function under town and country planning. It has considerable powers—to amalgamate, extinguish and expand major authorities—and it is suggested that they should be encouraged tc ask for additional powers if necessary. It is urged that there ought to be fewer, larger and better-balanced major authorities, more equal in financial resources, forming more satisfactory planning units, and corresponding more closely with the loyalties of the communities they embrace. What the authors desire is a good deal more than perfunc- tory geographical adjustment. They are asking for a considerable measure of real reform carried out in accordance with defined principles.
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