Prime minister Gordon Brown’s assertion that he wishes to empower communities and encourage sustainable efficiencies among local authorities has been welcomed by the New Local Government Network (NLGN).

The body is calling for the prime minister to place local leaders and decision-makers at the heart of a drive to re-engage people with local politics.

Chris Leslie, director of the network partners, remarks: "I hope that the prime minister will use this opportunity to think about the ways in which local politicians and community activists can be fully engaged in bringing people closer to politics.

"Council leaders play a key role in facilitating local policy debate and delivery and should be more prominent throughout our constitution."

The NLGN states that investing more power in regional institutions could help to forge a new generation of leaders while helping connect people with local government.

Last month, the network put forward news that could be of interest to those seeking social work roles, calling for local identity cards as a way of reinforcing community and improving access to public services.

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