2014年经济学人 城市放权 领导求权若渴奈何时机未到

City devolution

Viva la Wolvolution

Few city regions are ready for the powers their leaders crave¹

WOLVERHAMPTON, a poor city in the West Midlands, and Solihull, a rich suburb 30 miles (48km) to its east, do not have much in common. But on one thing their residents seem to agree. When asked whether they want to be part of a large combined authority with Birmingham, the biggest city in the region, many appear unenthusiastic. Wolverhampton's residents fear that Birmingham, which glitters with modern office blocks, would take all the money. In Solihull, locals worry that their pretty suburb would be ruined by more bureaucracy. “There would be a march in the street,” says Nicki Sumpter, a mother of two, only half-joking.

Most big city regions are lobbying for more powers from the government in the form of “combined authorities”. In his autumn statement on December 3rd George Osborne, the chancellor² of the exchequer³, confirmed his support for a “northern powerhouse” and for the idea of more powers, including a “metro⁴ mayor” for Greater Manchester, which became the first such combined authority in 2011. He said he is open to others doing the same. In November politicians in Birmingham and the four councils west of it, loosely known as the Black Country, announced they would try to form a combined authority. Public antipathy⁵ to the idea will not be the only reason they will struggle.

Part of the reason why Greater Manchester has done so well is its remarkably⁶ stable political leadership: both Sir Richard Leese, its leader, and Sir Howard Bernstein, its chief executive, have been in their jobs for nearly 20 years. Its history helps, as does its geography, points out Jon Neale from Jones Lang LaSalle, a property consultancy.The city of Manchester was once the centre of the cotton trade for a series of satellite towns. “All roads lead to it,” says Mr Neale. Deindustrialisation across the whole area, rather than just parts of it, in the 1960s spurred on councils to work together more effectively.

No other region has the same level of political collaboration⁷, points out Phillip Blond of ResPublica, a think-tank. In the West Midlands the problems seem acute. The idea of bringing together the Black Country with Birmingham has been mooted⁸ in vain before, as councillors squabbled over the name “Greater Birmingham”. The two areas, both with around 1m residents, are distinct: the Black Country is dominated by large metal-bashing sites while Birmingham is mostly full of offices. Unlike Manchester, a Labour stronghold, politics in the West Midlands is easily changeable, with several marginal seats. This makes it harder for councils to work together. Solihull, a Conservative council, has been invited to join the combined authority, but has not seemed keen.

City leaders are anxious not to be left out by Mr Osborne's proposals, suggests Daniel Wainwright, a journalist with the Wolverhampton Express & Star. But despite the urgency to push this through, local politicians seem unclear about what form the combined authority will take and what it will achieve. Some see it as a way to boost underperforming areas with extra cash; others as a way to streamline⁹ services. And most local politicians still dislike the idea of a metro mayor. Part of the problem is that “there isn't a Mr West Midlands,” bemoans¹⁰ Philip Calcutt, of the Black Country local enterprise partnership¹¹. Without better political leadership, devolution will remain a distant prospect¹².

1 crave   

vt.渴望得到，迫切需要，恳求，请求

参考例句：

• Many young children crave attention.许多小孩子渴望得到关心。
• You may be craving for some fresh air.你可能很想呼吸呼吸新鲜空气。

2 chancellor   

n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长

参考例句：

• They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
• He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。

3 exchequer   

n.财政部；国库

参考例句：

• In Britain the Chancellor of the Exchequer deals with taxes and government spending.英国的财政大臣负责税务和政府的开支。
• This resulted in a considerable loss to the exchequer.这使国库遭受了重大损失。

4 metro   

n.地铁；adj.大都市的；(METRO)麦德隆(财富500强公司之一总部所在地德国，主要经营零售)

参考例句：

• Can you reach the park by metro?你可以乘地铁到达那个公园吗？
• The metro flood gate system is a disaster prevention equipment.地铁防淹门系统是一种防灾设备。

5 antipathy   

n.憎恶；反感，引起反感的人或事物

参考例句：

• I feel an antipathy against their behaviour.我对他们的行为很反感。
• Some people have an antipathy to cats.有的人讨厌猫。

6 remarkably   

ad.不同寻常地，相当地

参考例句：

• I thought she was remarkably restrained in the circumstances. 我认为她在那种情况下非常克制。
• He made a remarkably swift recovery. 他康复得相当快。

7 collaboration   

n.合作，协作；勾结

参考例句：

• The two companies are working in close collaboration each other.这两家公司密切合作。
• He was shot for collaboration with the enemy.他因通敌而被枪毙了。

8 mooted   

adj.未决定的，有争议的，有疑问的v.提出…供讨论( moot的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The is sue was mooted on the Senate floor. 该问题在参院被提出讨论。 来自辞典例句
• The question mooted in the board meeting is still a moot point. 那个在董事会上（提出讨论）的问题仍（未决的）。 来自互联网

9 streamline   

vt.使成流线型；使简化；使现代化

参考例句：

• We must streamline our methods.我们必须简化方法。
• Any liquid or gas passing it will have streamline flow.任何通过它的液体或气体将呈流线型的流动。

10 bemoans   

v.为（某人或某事）抱怨( bemoan的第三人称单数 )；悲悼；为…恸哭；哀叹

参考例句：

• He always bemoans the shortage of funds for research. 他总是叹息研究经费不足。 来自互联网

11 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

12 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。