Concern over care homes’ first star ratings
Registered care homes and services such as domiciliary care have been awarded star ratings for the first time, but a mixture of up-to-date ratings and scores from earlier inspections has raised questions over their reliability.
Count ‘user-driven’ service costs, MPs say
Government departments pushing for ‘personalised’ public services need to set up rigorous systems to assess the so far unproven cost-effectiveness of a ‘user-driven’ approach, MPs have warned.
Hello and goodbye, by Philip Johnston
The May 1 election results gave Labour a bloody nose and shook up the political landscape. It also reflected voters’ feeling that local authorities have precious little power.
