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Articles by Claire Kober
AI-facilitated deliberation has its risks
AI AI-facilitated deliberation has its risks Approached with an appropriate level of caution, AI has the potential to transform the way local authorities both engage with local communities and design services to support them, says Claire Kober. By By Claire Kober | 31 October 2024 SHARE The overlap in readership between The MJ and the Science Adviser Journal is likely vanishingly small, which means a fascinating piece of research risks going unnoticed.
Delays are no longer an option when it comes to the housing crisis
PLANNING Delays are no longer an option when it comes to the housing crisis Claire Kober says housing remains a key issue for the new Government, but significant hurdles persist. 'Nimbyism and green belt development protests are growing concerns.' By By Claire Kober | 24 September 2024 SHARE Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney's documentary series, Welcome to Wrexham, highlights the challenges they face in owning a football club and engaging with the local community.
The sector's politicians have their families, responsibilities and mortgages, too
COUNCILLORS The sector's politicians have their families, responsibilities and mortgages, too The talent drain of councillors is a serious issue for the sector coming at a time when the mood music on devolution is at last upbeat, says Claire Kober By By Claire Kober | 06 August 2024 SHARE Parliament has always attracted local government's political talent, but the impact of last month's General Election is striking.
For-profits key for housing supply
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A golden age for local government could lie ahead
By Claire Kober | 27 September 2021 What’s in a name? Despite what Shakespeare said, if the last few days are anything to go by, it seems quite a lot, actually. The decision to rename the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) has sparked a crisis of confidence among some in the sector. In many respects it’s little wonder.
We need to ask 'what are offices for' ?
By Claire Kober | 17 August 2021 Are ministers set to order civil servants back to Whitehall offices? The story, said to have been anonymously briefed to journalists several times in recent weeks, has been met with a furious reaction from trades’ unions prompting Downing Street denials that staff who refuse could be penalised by a reduction in salary.
Hitting the target but missing the point
By Claire Kober | 07 July 2021 Anyone who knows me knows I’m a lover of targets – daily to-do lists, step challenges, running streaks and the like – all play a big role in my personal life. Having worked in local government for a decade, and now on the other side of the fence working in the private sector but with a number of public sector clients, targets also feature heavily in my professional life.
The importance of autonomy, flexibility and connection
By Claire Kober | 13 April 2021 One of the most unsettling features of the last year is the dramatic challenge it has placed on the way we feel about the future. Before COVID hit many of us perceived the future as relatively stable and clear, making planning simple. But certainty disappears in a crisis and it’s only now, when there is light at the end of the tunnel, that many of us are thinking about how our organisations operate in a post-pandemic world.
Councils must take a leading role in our economic recovery
By Claire Kober | 03 March 2021 In the week since the Prime Minister set out his four stage plan for easing lockdown restrictions, minds have understandably turned to life after the pandemic. Who will we see, where will we go, what is it that we’ve missed most in 12 months of socially distanced life? In the rush to return to near normality, it’s vital we don’t lose sight of the legacy of the pandemic.
We need to focus on developing our collective resilience
By Claire Kober | 20 January 2021 Urgh. This wasn’t the start to 2021 we were promised. Back in July the Prime Minister told us of his ambition of a ‘more significant return to normality’ by Christmas. Earlier still, in March, it was claimed that we could eliminate the worst of the virus within 12 weeks. Instead it’s been 10 months of unrealistic promises, stoked hopes and false dawns.
Councils and charities must stand shoulder to shoulder to lead the rebuild
By Claire Kober | 16 November 2020 So far, November has been quite a month. First came the news that the American people have voted to reject the populism of the Trump era, opting for more stable and moderate leadership in the form of Joe Biden. Then, we learned that the COVID-19 vaccine, developed by Pfizer and BioNTech, is effective in preventing the virus in over 90% of participants and can be rolled out from the end of the year.
Grappling with the long tail of the pandemic
By Claire Kober | 06 October 2020 In the early stages of the pandemic, many of us were struck by the outpouring of social solidarity that united communities across the country. We came together on a Thursday evening to clap for the NHS, set up WhatsApp groups to keep in touch with our neighbours and organised grocery trips to help those who were shielding. It was a salutary reminder that there’s nothing like a crisis to bring people together.
It's time for a serious, adult conversation on future funding
By Claire Kober | 14 July 2020 Back in March, in a world that felt much simpler than today, the Government launched a consultation on revising Public Works Loan Board (PWLB) lending terms. The consultation followed an announcement the previous autumn, that with immediate effect PWLB borrowing rates were to increase by a percentage point.
The lesson of the last 10 weeks
By Claire Kober | 02 June 2020 As a fully signed up member of the optimists’ club, I’m always on the lookout for silver linings emerging from the extraordinary times we’re living in. My mental list is stacked full of small, life-enhancing pluses that a slower pace of life enables – eating together as a family, bike rides, baking more... Very welcome though they are, these silver-linings extend beyond the small and personal.
Positives we can take from the COVID-19 pandemic
By Claire Kober | 21 April 2020 With the country facing its biggest challenge since World War Two, health services struggling to contain demand for ICU beds and no easy answers when it comes to an exit strategy from the lockdown, it would be understandable for the country to be in a state of collective depression. But it’s at times like this that our national resilience really comes to the fore.
Councils are survivors
By Claire Kober | 11 March 2020 I’m not in the business of shattering illusions, but need to gently let down anybody who thinks that securing a column for The MJ unlocks a lucrative income stream. Columnists don’t receive a fee for sharing their musings. Instead, we are thanked with an invitation to the annual contributors’ lunch – a lively affair in a small restaurant in the backstreets of Victoria.
Beyond the supply and demand equation
By Claire Kober | 28 January 2020 The first rule of columns is remembering it’s not simply an opportunity to talk about yourself. But rules can be broken once in a while, so please indulge me. Like many people in local government over the last decade, I’ve long regarded the housing crisis – a crisis of supply and demand, but also a crisis of affordability and quality – as the biggest issue facing individuals, families and communities.
Can the party leaders cut through to the issues that matter most?
By Claire Kober | 27 November 2019 I don’t think I am the first former politician to say that stepping away and doing something different provides a different perspective. The last 18 months as a civilian has taught me that I did overestimate the extent to which local residents have any idea – or really care about – what’s going on in their council.
Three thoughts on Brexit
By Claire Kober | 04 September 2019 A lack of planning on my part means I am writing this column from a family holiday in rural France. I’ve spent much of this morning contemplating the giant inflatable unicorn bobbing around the swimming pool. It reminded me of David Gauke’s holiday tweets earlier this summer, which helped position the unicorn as the poster child of the current state of British politics.
Spending Review needs to embody 'strategic, systematic change'
By Claire Kober | 17 July 2019 A fortnight on from the Local Government Association (LGA) annual conference, I’ve been reflecting on what felt different this year compared with last. Many things have moved on at pace while others seem to have barely shifted at all.
Has the sector turned its back on the race to the bottom mentality?
It’s often said that what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger; one upside of approaching a decade of budget cuts is the positive learning the sector has taken from the experience. Receive The MJ magazine each week and gain access to all the content on this website with a subscription. Full website content includes additional, exclusive commentary and analysis on the issues affecting local government. ` Already a subscriber? Login
How not to handle an announcement
By Claire Kober | 13 March 2019 If the launch of a Stronger Towns Fund was meant to strengthen the Government ahead of a meaningful vote on the EU withdrawal bill, the early signs are that it hasn’t exactly gone to plan. You could go as far as to say it has been a masterclass in how not to handle a political announcement. What was supposed to be a good news story failed to attract almost a single positive headline.
Local politicians must take the lead in uniting communities
By Claire Kober | 30 January 2019 Since Parliament’s ‘meaningful vote’ rejected the Prime Minister’s proposed Brexit deal, I’ve faced each day with a growing sense of trepidation. I’ve never been the gambling type – the idea of staking something valuable on an all or nothing bet has always been anathema to me. The stakes couldn’t be much higher: the future economic prosperity of the country, our place on the world stage and reputation as an open and tolerant nation.
More councils need to help drown out the voices of hatred
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Let's have less flash and more substance
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soapbox
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How we won the US election
Sam Bright speaks to Amelia Showalter – Barack Obama’s analytics chief – about big data, the shock of Hillary Clinton’s defeat, and how to fundraise $1bn Across the western world, progressive politics is being forced into retreat by the raging forces of populism and isolationism. In the midst of this pandemonium, Barack Obama’s campaigns possess an almost mythical aura.
Facing the future of work
Investment in digital skills is vital to ensure we are prepared for the fourth industrial revolution, writes Luke Heselwood Work is always changing, for better and for worse. As handloom weavers gave way to machines, and the typewriter was replaced by the computer, work changed, becoming more productive, innovative and complex. New technology promises further change, and how this is managed during the fourth industrial revolution is crucial to spread the benefits of the digital age.
We cannot allow the digital skills divide to transfer to a new generation
The spread of digital skills reveals where inequalities already exist, writes Claire Kober The correlation between where people live, their socio-economic circumstances and whether they have basic digital capability is well evidenced.
Kober: Politics is a team game. Councils nationally must unite
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It is hard for women to progress in leadership - this is not a myth
With that in mind, it seems right to remind people of the research the Fawcett Society published in July 2017, Does Local Government Work for Women. This report reveals some uncomfortable truths about the representation of women in local government. Barely any progress has been made in the last two decades to increase their profile.
Haringey and the Labour left’s war on local government
Politicians are shaped by the times in which they serve.
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