The slow and painful negotiations to shore up the ailing Pimlico School PFI deal have been given a new lease of life with a last-minute extension of the credit allocation for the project.
The finance director of the largest local authority in England has questioned the value-for-money justification for public-private partnerships and admitted that she has doubts about the cost...
Housing associations should not overstretch themselves by 'dabbling' in too many new activities, according to the chief executive of one of London's largest registered social landlords.
The government signalled further expansion of the health service telephone helpline NHS Direct this week after a study found it had lifted some of the pressure on out-of-hours GP services.
The government defiantly signalled its increasing commitment to public-private partnerships this week with the announcement that the total value of such projects will almost double to £20bn over the...
NHS managers and doctors were asking how they would cope with increased patient expectation and lack of cash this week as Health Secretary Alan Milburn launched a plan to cut deaths from heart...
Chief Inspector of Schools Chris Woodhead has urged the government to stop dodging the thorny issue of school finance reform, warning that without extra funding for poor schools the problems of...
Up to 1.3 million local government workers are set to receive a pay rise of just 3% despite warnings that councils are facing a worsening recruitment crisis.
Well-off patients could have to pay £50 for a 20-minute consultation with a GP as part of a radical overhaul of primary care services, family doctors have predicted this week.
The government has been forced radically to revise its attempts to regenerate the regions after a damning report from its own Performance and Innovation Unit (PIU) criticised Labour's approach as...
The targets announced by Tony Blair for the government's use of the Internet are under review and could be toughened following criticism that they are too general and vague.
Chris Woodhead, the chief inspector for schools, has warned that performance-related pay will have little real impact on teachers' earnings, because one in ten head teachers are incapable of...
Public services in France faced severe disruption this week as the compulsory 35-hour working week became reality. February 1 was the due date for the introduction of the much-debated 'loi Aubry'...
Keele University has become the first higher education institution in the UK to use a bond to finance the refurbishment of its student accommodation and pay off its debts.
Ministers will lead a robust reaffirmation of government policy at Labour's Local Governance conference this weekend when they will tell local authorities in blunt terms to 'reform or die'.
The NHS is failing to meet its New Deal target and there is evidence that a significant number of health service employers have yet to commit themselves to the initiative.
By Maria McHale Education leaders have warned the government that its standards agenda will suffer if councils are forced to fund in full the 3.3% teachers' pay rise announced this week. Education...
Education Secretary David Blunkett has ordered government intervention into the education authority in his home town of Sheffield after it was slated by Ofsted inspectors.
Labour is due to give local authorities an extra £35m in this year's finance settlement but with a warning from ministers that it should be used to curb council tax increases.