Communities may take it on themselves to choose which providers clean their streets or empty their bins under a vision of public service delivery set out by the local government minister this week.
Unison maintained its official support for Labour this week in the face of heightened hostility from members, and despite its leaders' private anger at the government's last-minute withdrawal from a...
Government plans to end the exclusion of people with mental health problems from opportunities in employment, education and housing should become a 'watershed', a leading charity said this week.
The auditor general for Scotland, Bob Black, has called for improvements in the management of Scottish Enterprise's business support service to achieve value for money from its £40m funding.
The government is to draw up a ten-year strategy for local government that will herald a 'new settlement' of the relationship between town halls and Whitehall.
Liverpool City Council chief executive David Henshaw leads an array of public sector figures in the Queen's birthday honours list. He was awarded a knighthood for services to local government. He won...
More than a third of councils could face court action and fines unless they take steps to prepare for the impact of new equality legislation, the Disability Rights Commission has warned.
Nearly 75% of finance professionals rate a 'valuable' pension scheme as one of the main benefits of working in the public sector, a survey revealed this week.
The Healthcare Commission is to overhaul its approach to inspection and is examining the Comprehensive Performance Assessment model used in local government.
CBI director general Digby Jones has demanded that all savings achieved by Sir Peter Gershon's efficiency review are independently audited so that ministers' claims of success can be verified.
NHS trusts that fail to implement National Institute for Clinical Excellence guidance on anti-cancer drugs and other treatments will receive lower star ratings, the Healthcare Commission and
the...
The planned new children's commissioner will have the power to order investigations without first seeking authorisation from ministers after all, Margaret Hodge has told MPs.
The stalemate over pay and conditions in local government has been broken with employers and unions agreeing to consult on an improved 8.9% three-year pay deal.
All local public services should be scrutinised by 'select committees' of councillors to ensure that unelected bodies are held accountable to the public, a think-tank has recommended.
The Local Government Association is to reform radically its member structure, replacing its 'static and old-fashioned' committees with cross-cutting boards in an attempt to widen its influence on...
To lose one key policy adviser may be regarded as a misfortune; to lose four looks like either carelessness or preparation for a change in leadership. Either way, a clear-out among Tony Blair's...
From time to time, evidence of invisible people and invisible jobs appear on the government’s radar screen: when the Census didn’t make sense, when cockle- pickers died in Morecambe Bay....
Senior private sector figures have pointed the finger at government organisations and blamed them for refusing to make information on Private Finance Initiative deals available to the public.
Camden council has stepped up its campaign against record industry giants' illegal fly-posting by seeking an interim court order preventing companies from flouting the law while it awaits a landmark...
