David is the Local Democracy & Empowerment director in Communities and Local Government. He and his directorate are responsible for implementation of the 2006 Local Government White Paper which proposes devolution of power to town hall, and from town hall to local communities: and for community empowerment, and specifically, following through the Local Government Act 2007 which devolves power to local authorities; restructuring local authorities; managing the department’s overall relationship with local government; implementing the action plan for community empowerment: ‘Building on Success’ launched by Hazel Blears on 19 October; making it easier for underused local authority assets to be managed by community groups, and following through the recommendations of a forthcoming report on making councillors more representative of their communities.

David also has corporate responsibilities, as a member of sub committees reporting to the CLG main Board on delivery and analysis.

Prior to joining Communities and Local Government in April 2007, David was responsible for implementation of the Gershon Review on efficiency across the public sector (central government, local government and the wider public sector). Before that he worked in Defra and the Ministry of Agriculture. This included a period in Brussels working on the Common Agricultural Policy, acting as principal private secretary to a Cabinet Minister, working on animal diseases including BSE and foot and mouth, and outsourcing IT services in Defra.

Updated Nov 07