Someone to blame, someone to sack: why local government is a failed state | Simon Jenkins

Mayors can be the answer to local accountability, but George Osborne’s plans are inconsistent and unpopular

George Osborne knows it, Theresa May knows it, the Hillsborough families know it. We all know it. Britain’s national government may be a democracy, but its local government is a failed state.

There were plenty of moments in the Hillsborough saga when local accountability could have lanced the boil. Local pressure could have forced the Sheffield police chief to resign after the Taylor repo...