OUR Prime Minister, David Cameron, has launched the open public services white paper.

He promised no more “like it or lump it” public services and suggested that individual citizens are being put in charge “like never before”.

Under these plans everyone could be given a legal right to choice in any public service and new neighbourhood councils would be able to run things at a “hyper local” level.

Services would be outsourced to the private sector, charities and mutual organisations.

It all sounds fine and exciting, but who is it that wants this kind of control?

I have yet to detect any great enthusiasm in Bolton for taking on duties currently provided by the council or the health authorities.

We all have grumbles, but I would prefer the council to continue emptying the bins and maintaining the street lights rather than being offered the right to choose a service provided by some bloke who happens to have a mate on the neighbourhood council.

This right to choose sounds a good idea in principle, but I suspect the majority of folk will not want to get involved in such matters.

Undermining councils can only lead to confusion and trouble down the line.

Some of the “Big Society”

rhetoric seems to have disappeared due to a lack of public enthusiasm.

It will be interesting to see how many of these White Paper ideas lead to legislation.