Ideas 10...Local Government

Local government is both a major employer and very expensive. It is financed partly by a community charge paid by each household and partly from central government. It is responsible for the upkeep of emergency services (fire, police, ambulance), hospitals, swimming pools, public sports centres, libraries, road maintenance, parks, social housing, education, refuse collection, museums, tourism, local building development, care homes, public transport subsidies, etc. Local government was created at a time when it took days to travel by stage coach from one city to another. It therefore beggars the question; do we still need it in its present form?

This is the age of the internet, with instant communications regardless of distance. In an age of automation, robotics and AI, the working week will soon be greatly reduced. Clearly local government will be obliged to also reduce worker's hours, due to competition from the emerging leisure orientated society. Tax revenue will fall due to cheaper products and services being produced by AI dominated organisations. Most of these local government services will therefore require a large cost effective automated input to exist and be affordable. The age of 'I Robot' will then be upon us. This technological development could then go one stage further. All local services could then be conceived, provided and controlled by just one central AI computer within central government.

This is inevitable because we live in a capitalist world where profits are generated by advancing technology, which performs tasks cheaper, better and quicker than before. Other nations will create leisure orientated societies, so the general public here will demand it. Whether civilisation will be the better for it, remains to be seen. It will be a new renaissance in a Pandora's box.

There have been three areas in which I have come into contact with my local government. These are:

Replacing Birmingham Central Library

Local Development

The Right To Buy Your Own Home

Residents also come into contact with local government through waste disposal, home extension planning laws, and annoying neighbours noise, smelly barbecues or burning rubbish. Search you local authorities website.