The government is to investigate the scale and nature of the private sector's role in delivering public services, as figures revealed that they now provide £44bn worth.
Love it or loathe it, the PFI has been a part of the public sector for more than a decade. But with changes in government policies and in its accounting treatment, what future, if any, does it have...
The PFI has proved its worth in many projects, large and small, but it is not the only funding game in town particularly when flexibility is needed. Nick Prior explains
English councils outside the capital are set to clash with their London counterparts as local authorities scrabble for resources in a tight fiscal climate.
The NHS must fund 5,000 new midwife posts, the midwives' professional body has insisted, following the publication of a report that highlighted variations in maternity care.
A report this month showed that councils are still dragging their feet when it comes to trading and charging. Even the government is getting exasperated at their refusal to make the most of their...
There are big ambitions for the Comprehensive Area Assessment: for it to judge how well councils are serving their communities, and for it to be a more nimble form of inspection than its predecessor...
Hospitals in England have been given four months and almost £60m to carry out a 'deep clean', which the government hopes will eradicate healthcare-acquired infections such as MRSA.
A flagship government policy aimed at encouraging GPs to shape local NHS services through a beefed-up commissioning role is struggling to take off, the Audit Commission has found.
Star ratings could give way to a traffic-light system of inspection, it emerged this week as public service watchdogs set out proposals for a radical revamp of the local inspection regime.
Whitehall departments are undermining devolution to town halls by attempting to introduce surreptitious targets for local services despite government promises to slash central diktats.
Despite the rhetoric, the public sector is still handcuffed by bureaucracy and targets. A better solution is performance contracting, which has worked in prisons and has the power to bring creativity...
From public sector productivity to migration, official statistics have rarely been so hotly contested. Tony Travers analyses the reasons for the party-political punch-ups
Wales has rejected the Blair-led notion that the private sector should be a major service provider. Andrew Davies, minister for finance and public service delivery, talks to Alex Klaushofer about...
Eradicating hospital infections is not just about intensive cleaning. The ways in which demanding targets have been reached might be a cause of the problem and amount to false economies. Noel...
Private contractors providing welfare services could be subjected to a ratings system similar to that used for councils and NHS trusts, under government plans to tackle unemployment and poverty.
Welsh council leaders hit out at an 'inadequate' settlement for local government this week, warning that council tax rises and service cuts would be inevitable.
Older people face a postcode lottery of follow-up care after falling and fracturing bones, according to a national audit by the Royal College of Physicians.
Delayed discharge from hospital is compromising the health and independence of vulnerable older people and damaging wider health service delivery, according to a hard-hitting report by the Wales...
Ways to cope with the economic and social implications of an ageing society are at last on the government's to-do list. Public Finance and Deloitte convened a round table of politicians and policy...
