London mayor Ken Livingstone now has new powers to give planning for waste facilities, but the Government has rejected his bid for a single waste authority.
Local government secretary, Ruth Kelly, and Livingstone held a joint press conference to launch the package of new powers, which include the ability to determine strategic waste planning applications.
The mayor told reporters that being able to approve facilities – rather than, as now, simply direct refusal – would tackle ‘nimby’ opposition to the vital infrastructure. But his five-year campaign for a single waste authority, boosted by the efficiencies agenda and borough acknowledgement of the existing system’s weaknesses, was ultimately knocked back. Instead, the boroughs will have to act in general conformity with the mayor’s waste strategy.
Announcing the package, Kelly said ‘it is right that we build on the success of devolution and grant additional powers to further strengthen London leadership’. A more strategic approach on planning decisions would ‘deliver better co-ordination and services’, she claimed. The mayor would be able to force a borough to accept plans, although Whitehall could still intervene.
While disappointed the new powers were not as far-reaching as he hoped Livingstone, said: ‘This announcement is welcome recognition of the successes already achieved through the mayoral system, and provides the opportunity to build on this success and further improve.’
But the Association of London Government, while welcoming the move to devolve more decisions from Whitehall on housing and skills, was concerned that powers were also being sucked up from the boroughs. Chairman Councillor Merrick Cockell said: ‘We are concerned about the principle of the mayor giving planning permission over the heads of borough planning committees and local communities.’
The rejection of the idea of a single waste authority – designed to overcome inefficiencies created where waste is being sent from one part of London to another, and vice versa – was warmly welcomed by boroughs, whose procurement was on hold pending a government decision.
The executive member for environment in Southwark – awarded £34.5M in private-finance initiative credits for waste management last year – Councillor Lisa Rajan, said: ‘This is great news. We can get on with delivering our innovative resources programme.’ The waste industry, meanwhile, was pleased that the mayor had stronger planning powers, which Environmental Services Association chief executive, Dirk Hazell, hoped would be used ‘to deliver appropriate new waste-management infrastructure on a timely basis’.