Local authorities could raise an extra £65m under new government proposals to end the automatic entitlement to a 50% council tax discount for second homes.
England's pensioners missed out on almost £1.9bn last year, largely because the government failed to inform them of the range of benefits available, according to the National Audit Office.
A 'spasm of anti-centralism' since Labour came to power has threatened universal standards and equality of access to public services, according to a Left-wing think tank.
Home Secretary David Blunkett this week played down claims that he is creating a national police force, despite unveiling centrally determined priorities for local forces.
The controller of the Audit Commission has urged councils to pressurise the government to ensure that it delivers on a promise to offer greater freedoms to top-performing authorities.
The Improvement and Development Agency has appointed the colourful and often controversial chief executive of Camden, Steve Bundred, as its new executive director.
Government plans to free only the best NHS trusts from Whitehall control and to penalise councils that fail to tackle bed-blocking have been criticised by health service managers.
Tony Blair's big political ideas for the next 12 months have drawn immediate criticism following their unveiling at the state opening of Parliament this week.
Social services are on the verge of collapse, despite the government's promise of a 6% increase in spending in each of the next three years, the King's Fund said this week.
Sir Jeremy Beecham has made a last-ditch plea to the government to scrap plans to fine authorities deemed responsible for bed-blocking, in advance of next week's Queen's Speech.
Official complaints about elected members of public bodies have risen dramatically in the past few months, following the introduction of a new code of conduct for councillors, the Office of the...
The visibly deteriorating state of council housing is a political predicament that has haunted successive governments.
In Scotland, the issue of how to tackle an outstanding repair and investment...
Another local authority has pulled out of the government's stock transfer programme because it would prefer to find other ways of improving its housing.
New Labour's obsession with public sector targets has distorted the abilities of the education and health sectors to deliver services the public needs, MPs have heard.
The government has confirmed the appointment of James Strachan, currently chief executive of the Royal National Institute for the Deaf, as the new chair of the Audit Commission.
The Office for National Statistics this week mounted a staunch defence of the way it compiled the 2001 census after fears about the data grew.
Members of the London Assembly are urging its budget...
Schools could soon be hosting health and social services, citizens' advice bureaux and even post offices under a pilot scheme to extend their use in the community.
Schools minister Cathy Ashton...
The chief medical officer for England has ordered an inquiry into the errors that led to 24 patients in Middlesbrough on Teesside being exposed to Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease.
Sir Liam Donaldson...
Sir Andrew Foster, the controller of the Audit Commission, found himself under fire last week from council chief executives and senior managers who were angered by the watchdog's implementation of...
London Mayor Ken Livingstone is likely to oppose government plans to combine the 2004 local elections with the European elections because he fears voters could be confused by the number of ballot...
The Audit Commission will not take into account local authorities' financial resources or levels of deprivation when grading them under the Comprehensive Performance Assessment, it has confirmed....
The government 'remains committed' to having elected US-style mayors running town halls, even though Labour was beaten in three of last week's four contests.
The party lost control of traditional...
Senior MPs were this week critical of news that the partner of a senior Labour minister is the front-runner to chair the Audit Commission.
Members of the Commons' public administration select...
