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28 May 21
Amendments to international reporting standards proposed this week will see auditors demand more involvement with councils' processes for identifying fraud, an expert told PF.
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25 May 21
A two-person fraud team prevented £296,000 of fraud at a West Midlands council in 2020-21, a rise around 70% on the previous year.
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24 May 21
North Yorkshire County Council’s companies have forecast losses of more £600,000 in 2020-21 due to the impact of Covid-19 on their performance.
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21 May 21
Transport for London’s short-term outlook has been revised from negative to stable, due to government pledges to support the network's income pressures, according to ratings agency Standard and Poor’...
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21 May 21
A senior MP has questioned whether the new 'system leader' for local audit proposed by the government will possess the expertise to deal with the complexities of the sector.
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21 May 21
The government's preference for providing grants through competitive bidding creates a vicious cycle that hurts authorities most in need of the money, says CIPFA chief executive Rob Whiteman.
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20 May 21
Government proposals on local audit have gained a qualified welcome from the sector – but questions still remain, say experts – PF rounds up the reaction.
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19 May 21
The government has proposed making the replacement to the Financial Reporting Council the new system leader for local audit, following the Redmond Review.
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18 May 21
A combination of pressures from Brexit and the coronavirus pandemic could squeeze city council revenues and put more pressure on budgets, according to ratings agency Standard and Poor’s.
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17 May 21
Torbay Council proposes borrowing at least £45m to lend to a recently-created housing subsidiary, to help boost the number of affordable homes in the borough.
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14 May 21
The Supreme Court has allowed a group of local authorities to pursue a claim for business rates against landlords who transferred properties to special purpose vehicles, in a case which could result...
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14 May 21
The London Borough of Newham has approved plans to spend hundreds of millions of pounds in the next three years to regenerate and add to its housing stock.
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14 May 21
Consultation shows support for online sales tax, but briefing raises questions over appetite for change.
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14 May 21
Legislation aimed at flagging up financial issues in UK local authorities is outdated and needs an overhaul, according to London Borough of Croydon's interim finance chief.
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13 May 21
Audit Wales has asked the police to investigate the accounts of a South Wales council as part of an annual audit.
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12 May 21
The London Borough Croydon has proposed reprofiling a £69.2m arts centre refurbishment as capital spending, after council subsidiary Brick by Brick was “unable” to fund the project.
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11 May 21
Slough Borough Council did not understand the risks of low reserve levels, a damning report has said.
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11 May 21
Belfast City Council has rejected a commercial investment strategy, put forward with the aim of helping raise additional funds and finance the authority’s Covid-19 recovery.
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10 May 21
Portsmouth City Council is seeking a contractor to oversee maintenance of heating services at council owned properties worth at least £105m.
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7 May 21
South Lanarkshire Council has approved the transfer of £8m to its capital programme, after receiving additional Covid-19 funding from the Scottish Government.
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7 May 21
The London Borough of Lambeth will refund up to £26.6m in overcharged water fees to its tenants, after a high court appeal failed.
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7 May 21
Councils in England reported additional cost pressures of £12.8bn relating to Covid-19 in 2020-21, according to outturn figures from the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government.
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7 May 21
Charlene Maginnis, Crown Commercial Service’s head of policy delivery – supply chain and service offering, explains how the Government’s rules on social value are shaping the public sector’s buying...
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5 May 21
Pandemic-related pressures have seen local authority funded nurseries cut services amid swelling budget gaps, a report has revealed.
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4 May 21
Some funding streams available to help local authorities in England fund energy-efficient initiatives are actively working against reducing emissions, a local government network organisation said.