More than 600 members of the Public and Commercial Services union at the conciliation service Acas are balloting for industrial action in a dispute over pay. The vote, which runs until August 27,...
You might be fighting fit and at the top of your game, but if you're 65 you can be forced out of your job. This could all change after a spate of age discrimination claims and a European Court...
The Local Government Association has launched a cross-party attack on the government's police reform plans, criticising attempts to increase accountability.
he green paper on police service reform proposes to include directly elected local representatives on police authorities. But will they have enough clout, asks Rick Muir
It's a tough job& but someone's got to be chief secretary to the Treasury. And who better than a long-standing minister with an economics background? Vivienne Russell meets her
Outsourced public services are big business. DeAnne Julius's landmark review last week valued this relatively young sector at £79bn, with the potential to keep on growing. Business Secretary John...
A bid to revitalise local democracy and hand control over assets and spending to local communities were at the heart of the local government white paper published by Communities Secretary Hazel...
Organisations struggling to provide better services for less money need strong financial management. Progress is encouraging, the CIPFA FDs' survey shows, but there's still more to do. Ian Carruthers...
Conservative leader David Cameron told councillors that the Tories were the true localist party but declined to commit to a reform of town hall finance.
How do you persuade people to stop behaving badly, or to do things for their own good? Not by bribing them or banning the activities, says Ann Rossiter, who argues that reinforcing social norms is...
Increasing local accountability for services and improving the fractious relationship between town halls and Whitehall could create an 'upward curve' in democracy, the Local Government Association's...
The long-term growth in household energy consumption is beginning to reverse, with energy efficiency in the home improving by 19% between 1990 and 2004, according to a National Audit Office report on...
Chancellor Alistair Darling has said the loss of two child benefit data CDs was 'entirely avoidable', after a trio of reviews of the 'woefully inadequate' processes that led to the loss were...
Councils are confused. On the one hand, Hazel Blears promises a new white paper to empower them. On the other, she is busy devolving control away from them to local citizens. But there's no...
Local government commissioning has become a much more complex and strategic exercise, involving a variety of different agencies and systems. John Tizard discusses what's needed to do the job properly
Councils are being asked to urgently review their surveillance operations after allegations that they are using them for matters such as rubbish dumping.
The government is facing the biggest assault yet on its public sector pay policy after council workers in trade union Unison voted for 'sustained' industrial action - beginning with a two-day strike...
