For all their talk about the importance of creating 'sustainable communities', the Labour Government have indicated that they will NOT be backing the Sustainable Communities Bill which is due for a 2nd Reading this Friday 19th January.

Ministers Ruth Kelly MP and Phil Woolas MP have written to Cabinet colleagues to this effect foiling any chance that the Bill will succeed (pending a huge backbench revolt - which seems unlikely).

The SC Bill [1], will "promote the sustainability of local communities, in particular through the publication and implementation of an action plan for sustainable communities, and to provide that money to be spent by government on services provided for the benefit of local communities is to be spent in the way that local communities wish, rather than central government determines." The Bill was backed by OXford City Council in 2006 following a
motion from the City's Green Group. The Bill would provide more powers for authorities such as Oxford and provide more local control over service delivery.

Says Green Group leader Craig Simmons: "City Councillors backed the Sustainable Communities Bill because it would give us more freedom from central Government control enabling us to better represent the wishes of the electorate. Given the Government's position, I expect that our own Labour MP, Blair loyalist Andrew Smith, will be opposing it."

Both Tories and LibDems are supporting the Bill. The Greens are urging all Oxford East electors to write to Andrew Smith.