More than £70m is being wasted across Whitehall every year because civil servants cannot understand the complex financial spreadsheets and models prepared by their colleagues, it has been claimed.
Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles threatened to force councils to reform pay deals for senior staff as he published updated guidance on town hall transparency.
The public sector recorded a surplus of £11.4bn in January, latest figures show, but analysts say the government is still unlikely to meet its borrowing target this year.
Child poverty campaigners are pressing councils to prioritise the needs of low-income families as figures published today showed wide disparities in wealth across the UK.
Twenty more cities in England are to be given extra economic powers as part of the government’s City Deals programme, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has announced.
The government’s council finance reforms for England aim to correct the ‘historical anomaly’ that has led to the UK economy being concentrated in London and the Southeast, Deputy Prime Minister Nick...
A third local government pension scheme has joined the Treasury-backed Pension Infrastructure Platform, set up to boost investment in major capital projects.
Councils have hit back at suggestions that cheap public sector catering contracts are responsible for the decline in food standards that has contributed to the horsemeat scandal.
Public sector job losses are set to be 300,000 higher by the end of 2017/18 than currently predicted, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies’ annual analysis of the government’s spending plans.
Plans to give councils greater control of local transport spending could weaken transparency and accountability for public money, the Public Accounts Committee warned today.
Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles has appointed four new members to the board of the Audit Commission, which will be tasked with shutting down the spending watchdog.
Giving local authorities a greater role in skills and training programmes could cut youth unemployment by around 20% in just three years, the Local Government Association has found.
Energy minister Greg Barker has urged councils to become ‘agents’ for energy efficiency following the launch of the government’s landmark Green Deal programme.
Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles has announced plans to alter the referendum trigger for council tax rises after warning that charges from a ‘secret state’ of unelected local bodies were...
Public bodies in Nottinghamshire received more than 800 applications for an innovative training scheme that allows finance staff to work across different employers
Almost three-quarters of English local authorities will be demanding more in council tax from low-income families from April, the Resolution Foundation has revealed.
A new ‘Cabinet’ made up of the leaders of eight of the largest cities in England will urge the government to offer Community Budget deals across the country
Councils could cut back-office costs by more than a third if they give ‘chip and pin’ style prepaid cards to people with personal care budgets, according to think-tank Demos.
The National Audit Office has warned that funding cuts facing councils over the next two years will pose ‘increasing difficulties’ for town halls, and urged Whitehall to better understand the impact...
