Metropolitics

Municipal socialism in France from the interwar period to the 1970s

Aude Chamouard & translated by Oliver Waine — 2014-04-30T04:55:00Z

“Municipal socialism” has marked the history of many cities in France (Lille, Toulouse and Bordeaux, to name but three). The period between the two world wars saw the rise of the great figures of the Socialist Party – following in the footsteps of Henri Sellier – on the political landscape of urban France. But how did they differ from other elected representatives? And is it true to say they espoused an innovative form of local government? Following the recent municipal elections in France, we

- From the Field / France, local government, local authorities, local councillors, local democracy, municipal, Parti socialiste, municipal socialism, Socialist Party, patronage

The Localism Act in London: institutionalising urban divisions

Justinien Tribillon — 2014-04-16T05:00:00Z

By decentralising planning powers to local communities, the British Conservative government claims that they are strengthening local democracy and protecting it from the mistakes of big government. In a map-based analysis of the effects of the Localism Act in London, Justinien Tribillon disputes this claim and underlines the reinforcement of urban economic divisions through a new parochialism.
“Good fences make good neighbours,” goes an English proverb.
Introduced by the coalition

- Debates / participation, local government, governance, local authorities, London, United Kingdom, local democracy, neighborhood, localism, England

Will local-government reform in London involve or abandon its citizens?

Martine Drozdz & translated by Oliver Waine — 2013-07-03T12:23:55Z

While the current financial crisis has compromised local authorities' ability to deliver municipal services, the Localism Act adopted in England in 2011 seeks to relieve the problem by encouraging greater involvement from civil society. However, when combined with drastic public spending cuts, this reform above all threatens to sideline citizens in favour of the private sector.
One of the first acts of the Conservative–Lib Dem coalition that came to power in the UK in 2010 was to bring in

- Debates / participation, local government, governance, local authorities, London, United Kingdom, local democracy, urban public service, neighborhood, localism, England, urban services

The politics of municipal mergers (and demergers) in Montreal

Richard Harris — 2013-03-06T05:55:00Z

In the late 1990s, the province of Quebec reacted to metropolitan growth in Montreal by merging the city with 27 of its suburbs, provoking a major debate and, ultimately, a number of demergers. An account written by one of the leading opponents to amalgamation (and ex-mayor of one of the demerged suburbs) discusses the experience and the issues at stake, providing a timely counterpoint to the French debate on “Greater Paris”.
Detailed accounts of municipal amalgamation can be exciting. Who

- Reviews / local government, decentralization, governance, democracy, local finance, local governance, local authorities, intercommunality, Montreal, Canada

Do local politicians represent the people? A sociological portrait

Michel Koebel & translated by Oliver Waine — 2012-11-28T05:55:00Z

France's 500,000 local councillors are regularly presented as the most popular elected officials and those closest to the French public. However, access to the positions of municipal councillor and mayor are increasingly subject to sexual, generational, residential and, above all, social selectivity: more retirees, civil servants and executives, and fewer manual workers and self-employed people.
Municipal councillors are regularly presented as the most popular elected officials with the

- Debates / inequalities, local authorities, local councillors, local democracy, municipal, elections, discrimination, mayors

What future for periurban communities: clubbisation or differentiated social dynamics?

Violaine Girard & translated by Oliver Waine — 2011-11-16T09:12:22Z

In La ville émiettée, Éric Charmes describes the phenomenon of “clubbisation” in towns and villages in the outer suburbs, where there is a growing tendency to operate exclusivist policies, with the aim of effecting a social selection of inhabitants. Although Charmes's work raises many issues, it overlooks the diverse range of social and political dynamics that can be found in periurban areas.
The urbanisation of rural areas on the outskirts of cities – an ongoing process in France since the

- Reviews / governance, clubbisation, gated communities, periurban, local authorities, local councillors