2011 is with us. What will it bring? One of the fascinations of law is that we do not entirely know, but the year began in very difficult economic circumstances. Sound management of the economy is now crucial and it is interesting that, against such a background, the government appears to have something of an obsession with constitutional reform.
Many public bodies will be axed under the Public Bodies Bill – see A Breathtaking Bill of which even Henry VIII would have been proud. Greater powers will be handed to local government under the Localism Bill which will give local authorities a “general competence” to act in, for example, the provision of services. Under the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Bill, the present police authorities will disappear to be replaced by elected police commissioners. The European Union Bill is aimed at tightening parliamentary control over how the UK opts into various European Union legislation.
