John O'Brien
Hearing survivors’ voices loud and clear
With the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse due to be published later this year, we must ensure the voices of victims and survivors are heard, says John O’Brien.
Creating a coherent framework for the residual COVID challenges
Councils' voice in, for example, the discussion about the future organisation of public health needs to be heard clearly if there is to be a coherent framework in which we can work effectively on the residual challenges of COVID, says John O'Brien.
The answers cannot wait for long
If local government is to play the vital role required in the recovery of places and communities, it will need some clarity and medium-term certainty about the underpinning finance regime, says John O'Brien of London Councils.
Stay focused on the longer-term climate ambitions
Remaining focused on the longer-term climate ambitions can be challenging, says John O'Brien - 'but they are ambitions that will often be part of our broader, near term recovery efforts as well'.
The complexity conundrum
John O'Brien says there must be some clear line of sight from the Government on the role of the sector in renewal 'and contributing to tackling the big national challenges we all face'.
Let's hold on to what we've learned
John O'Brien says that for 'all of the enormous and well documented challenges, people at the local government front line have achieved remarkable things at pace and scale'. We must hold on to what has been learned, he adds.
Can councils convene local systems to develop resilience against future shocks?
In the very near term there are enormous challenges in London, not least of the capacity of public transport to move a reasonable number of people around safely to jobs and schools, says John O'Brien.
Let's have no shortsightedness about the scale of the COVID-19 challenge
In rising to the challenge thrust upon us by COVID-19 some of what we are likely to be tasked with will be incredibly hard and our own capacity and resilience will be hit hard too, says John O'Brien of London Councils.
Learning from two different governance systems
With elections looming in 2020, it is a topical moment to think about what we can learn from the combined authority structures and from London's governance system, says John O'Brien. What works best?
That complex conversation with business
The support of the business voice in helping secure some of 'our more ambitious asks around fiscal devolution' will never be unconditional, says John O'Brien.