Member

I would also like to share my concerns on how this Bill fails to deal with the financial crisis councils face across the country. Liberal Democrats are disappointed that no sections of the Bill have been dedicated to providing safeguards to ensure responsible use of public funds and maintain public trust. Amendment 84 in the name of my hon. Friend the Member for Guildford (Zöe Franklin) would place a duty on the Secretary of State to ensure that mayoral combined authorities have sufficient financial resources and adequate administrative support to discharge effectively any functions relating to the preparation, publication and delivery of local growth plans. As the Bill stands, it offers no financial clarity to councils, yet it would allow the Secretary of State to respond to proposals from mayors of strategic authorities and to provide them with greater powers to deliver their areas of competence, including changes to law or funding.