As the UK feels the pain of the harshest austerity package since the war, don’t expect any letup in George Osborne’s March Budget. Better get used to the new normal, says Tony Travers
Finance directors’ fears are mounting over how their councils will be able to run services effectively and balance their books in the medium term, a CIPFA survey reveals.
English councils are considering issuing small local bonds to raise funds for essential capital projects, according to the New Local Government Network.
The Accounts Commission has ordered an inquiry into a controversial deal whereby the chief of Scotland’s biggest fire brigade was able to return to post just weeks after retiring
Doctors and other health professionals will be given control of almost £65bn of English NHS spending from next year if the government’s controversial reforms go ahead, according to Department for...
The £250m fund to help councils maintain or return to weekly waste collections is now open for business, Communities Secretary Eric Pickles has announced.
The government has finalised the amount that councils will have to pay to take control of council house rents in their area, with payments lower than originally planned.
Whole Place is the new Total Place, as community budgeting helps both town halls and Whitehall free up their fiscal thinking. So are the chances of joined-up spending better or worse in an era of...
The Welsh auditor general has criticised a climate of informality and failure to effectively challenge decision-making at Pembrokeshire County Council.
The good news is that the government is scrapping the much-hated Housing Revenue Account from April. The less good news is that the Treasury, not councils, could still end up in the driving seat
As head of the Government Finance Profession, Richard Douglas is overseeing big changes to Whitehall’s financial management. He tells PF how he combines that with his day job at the Department of...
Eric Pickles has warned local government finance officers that they risk getting involved in politics if they recommend a council tax rise in their areas.
