The government's attempt to banish disillusionment with Best Value by overhauling the system is 'flawed' and needs more thought, a leading local government moderniser has told Public Finance .
Employers and unions are calling on the government to clarify the terms under which local authority housing staff will be expected to transfer to new arm's-length management organisations (Almos).
Local government representatives have urged the government to tackle the 'grim' state of social care and fill the struggling service's £200m funding gap.
Glasgow contains the three most deprived areas in Britain, according to a study by the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) which ranks parliamentary constituencies by their levels of poverty and social...
Ministers have made good their pledge to lighten the burden that Best Value places on local authorities by reducing the statutory obligations they face.
A fast-track scheme to nurture future council leaders is being launched after a census of councillors confirmed that town halls are overwhelmingly populated by white, middle-class retired men.
Health Secretary Alan Milburn was this week told to stop tampering with the structure of the NHS and ignoring his own department's ten-year strategy to give staff more time to deliver his much...
A Commons' committee this week condemned the 'appalling state' of Britain's parks and open spaces and called for a revision of planning policies to overcome 'institutional obstacles' to improvements...
Local government minister Nick Raynsford has confirmed that councils will be allowed to invest in money market funds, as revealed two weeks ago by Public Finance .
All top-tier local authorities will be given a 'scorecard' marking their overall performance by the end of this year, under plans published by the Audit Commission.
More than half of local authorities have met the government target of putting 25% of services on-line by the start of this year, according to research published this week.
The Local Government Association has backed David Blunkett's overhaul of the asylum system in the face of grassroots criticism over plans for induction centres in rural areas.
Shire district councils this week stepped up their campaign for 'fair reform' of the local government finance system, after it emerged that the replacement for the current scheme was unlikely to...
Philip Mawer, 54, the most senior aide to Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey, was approached to apply for the job of parliamentary commissioner for standards because of the poor quality of the...
Stephen Byers' April deadline for implementing changes to the Best Value regime will almost certainly be missed as the review he set up remains mired in stalemate.
Local Government Secretary Stephen Byers this week revealed that he was prepared to review the controversial local government categorisation system announced in the recent white paper.
The government this week unveiled plans to pilot electronic voting across England and Wales but the proposals were immediately called into question by a report highlighting the potential for fraud...
The government is considering a radical change to the structure of the Local Government Pension Scheme as it seeks to reduce the rising cost of contributions from the public purse.
Local government employers are preparing themselves for the worst pay dispute 'in a decade' after negotiations with trade unions broke up without agreement this week.
Boxing fans denied the prospect of a Lennox Lewis/Mike Tyson match-up would have been well advised to turn their attentions to Cardiff last weekend, as the government and unions squared up to each...
