It is just as well Northern Ireland Secretary Peter Hain did not expect a warm welcome for his November 22 announcement of a restructuring of the province's public sector based on the three-year...
Public bodies providing local services should be able to opt out of implementing new policies if central government has not provided adequate funding, according to a think-tank.
The details of the revenue support grant settlement, expected next week, remain cloaked in mystery although local government is hopeful that ministers will have found some extra cash to alleviate...
Sir Michael Bichard's criticisms of the National Audit Office, published in PF last week, are untrue and unfair. The watchdog's work has actually resulted in lasting improvements and even saved...
CPAs for Whitehall? Don't make me laugh, says Colin Talbot. Sir Gus O'Donnell's Departmental Capability Reviews for central government are far removed from the rigorous external performance...
The Home Office's finance chief is bringing a professional accounting approach to Whitehall at a time when it is under most pressure. She talks to Mark Conrad
The British civil service is rightly admired throughout the world, and yet everyone wants to 'reform' it. Tony Travers considers the skills that are needed for the thoroughly modern mandarin
Big changes are afoot in Whitehall, starting with the role of the traditional civil servant. But will this rush to 'professionalise' have the desired effect? Public Finance and Deloitte invited a...
The government's Departmental Capability Reviews were this week dismissed by one of Whitehall's most respected commentators as lacking credibility because of the civil service's insistence on self-...
Government plans to replace Northern Ireland's 26 district councils with seven 'super-councils' have been attacked by local parties for reinforcing sectarian divisions.
The Metropolitan Police Authority has submitted its draft budget to London Mayor Ken Livingstone at the start of the Met's most difficult funding round for years.
The regeneration of the Thames Gateway presents a golden opportunity to rethink how public services are designed and funded, local government and communities minister David Miliband said this week.
Prime Minister Tony Blair this week rejected criticisms that he hindered Whitehall transparency by refusing to allow his strategy adviser Lord Birt to be questioned by a Commons committee.
Public sector organisations are racing ahead with outsourcing but all too often are dependent on just one or two suppliers. Paul Bentham says it's time to get a grip and inject a bit of...
Many of Scotland's public bodies do not have clear leadership policies and have no idea whether the millions of pounds being spent in this area are having an effect, Audit Scotland has found.
The Audit Commission this week accused Whitehall of hindering local government's efficiency by tampering with regulations that impose huge costs on councils.
The troubled Child Support Agency has refused to disclose whether former chief executive Doug Smith received a bonus before leaving earlier this year despite revealing that senior staff have...
Choosing spending priorities involves some tough, painful and invariably unpopular decisions. Harrow decided to put its residents in the hot seat and invigorate democracy in the process. Maria McHale...
Rhodri Morgan is every bit as evangelical as Tony Blair when it comes to improving public services. But Wales is taking a very different route from Westminster. Steve Davies reports on public sector...
Councils that demonstrate the most imagination will be best placed to take advantage of the government's new local regeneration funds, a Treasury minister said last week.
Central and local government have agreed to patch up their differences and work together to try to keep council tax rises low following angry exchanges earlier in the week.
Partnerships between public sector organisations risk wasting money unless there is a clear sense of what they are hoping to achieve and who is in charge, the Audit Commission warned this week.
The civil service should be replaced by a new organisation embracing all those involved in the management of the public sector, former top civil servant Sir Michael Bichard has suggested.
