In my travels up and down the country, as chief executive of the ~National Association of Local Councils~ (NALC), many people have told me of their dissatisfaction and uncertainty about the way services and functions are delivered to them on the ground.

They do not quite understand the structure and role of principal local government in service delivery and in representing their views. The problem for local people is, in essence, that principal local authorities are both too large and too small at the same time. Local communities feel a real distance from being able to shape and influence key services that affect their daily lives.