The past four decades have produced major technological, medical and engineering advances but have failed dismally to reform local government finance. Sarah Wood says this time there must be change...
The Commons Treasury select committee has called on the government to consider raising air passenger duty to enhance its efforts to meet environmental targets.
A tool for local economic regeneration or an antisocial licence to print money? As competition hots up in the bidding war for the UK's first 'super-casino', Peter Hetherington talks to the councils...
The environment dominated the local elections campaign this week as the political parties vied to demonstrate their green credentials in the run-up to polling day on May 4.
The next Conservative government will not run public services 'from a desk in Whitehall' and will give frontline organisations the freedom to make decisions in response to local circumstances, Oliver...
Flooding, terrorism and an oil depot explosion have all wreaked havoc in the past few years. So how can public bodies use continuity planning to prepare for such disasters in the future? Ronan Ball...
The Treasury and the National School of Government are to launch an e-learning training programme to boost financial management skills across Whitehall.
Government attempts to speed up planning decisions must not overlook the need for house building to keep pace with economic growth, social landlords said this week.
The latest guidance issued to councils on 'efficiency gains' is clearer and acknowledges the importance of quality. But there are still gaps, not least how all these savings should be measured....
Town halls will need more money if they are to help the government achieve their ambitious carbon emission targets, local government leaders warned this week.
Whitehall's scientists this week called on the government to stop its 'schizophrenic and dangerously complacent' approach to science allowing public sites to close while investing £10bn in...
Self-governing trust schools are New Labour's latest big idea for education. But confusion still reigns over their structure and how they will be governed in practice. Tash Shifrin investigates
Chancellor Gordon Brown this week injected further momentum into the government's devolution agenda but the tone emerging from Number 11 points towards a regionalist approach at the expense of...
Next week's Budget looks like being a return to form for the chancellor, thanks to a big rise in tax receipts. But is he on course to hit his political as well as economic targets? Peter Riddell...
The Treasury's public sector pay committee has created a 'tension' between ministers' policy of local pay flexibility and the chancellor's requirement that all major remuneration decisions must pass...
Up to 80 cottage hospitals in England are threatened with closure and yet NHS community hospitals are meant to be the next big thing. Tash Shifrin investigates
At first glance the Local Authority Business Growth Incentive scheme seems to be a good idea. But it does away with the principle of equalisation, distributing funds regardless of councils' needs or...
