b'Chapter 6 Charging and Trading under the 2011 Act Introduction 6.1 This chapter examines charging and trading in the light of the introduction of general powers of competence contained in the 2011 Act. The former Coalition Government acted to remove what it considered were barriers to local government innovation by introducing GPOC contained in section 1 of the 2011 Act. According to the DCLGs impact assessment published in January 2011 which set out the case for introducing the radical new powers, it stated that the broadly defined well-being power in the 2000 Act had not been widely used by local authorities. Further, DCLG had concerns that the Brent Borough Council v Risk Management Partners [2009] EWCA Civ 4903 Court of Appeal judgment threw into doubt the use of the power in enabling local authorities to give guarantees and indemnities and to act in their own financial interest to generate efficiencies and secure value for money outcomes. Therefore, to both rectify this situation and (in DCLGs words) to promote the radical devolution of power away from Westminster and Whitehall to councils and communities, the Government decided to replace the existing well-being power in England (well-being powers will remain and apply in Wales) with a general power of competence for local government. This chapter examines the impact of these powers on charging, trading and shared services initiatives which local authorities may undertake or contemplate. It is fair to say that despite the wide-ranging nature of the basic enabling power, local authority trading and charging activities will continue to be carefully scrutinised to ensure such activities are lawful and within the limitations set under the new powers themselves and also within the confines of existing law. General power of competence 6.2 Section 1 of the 2011 Act is the boldest attempt yet to find a sustainable and comprehensive remedy to local governments vires problems which have hampered municipal enterprise for several decades.Principal local authorities, including county councils will have access to the general power of competence. This includes the 15 county councils who are also fire and rescue authorities, as they are the principal local authority for the county and exercise significantly wider functions than stand-alone fire and rescue authorities.3The Supreme Court overturned this judgment in Brent LBC & Ors v Risk Management Partners Ltd [2011] UKSC 7 66'