There are “significant weaknesses” in the auditing practices of many Welsh town and community councils, according to a report by the Welsh Auditor General.
The Scottish finance secretary has defended his planned settlement for local government while stressing he is “open minded” to giving councils greater fiscal autonomy.
Excessive staff turnover in the civil service is costing the taxpayer up to £74m a year in recruitment, training and lost productivity, according to a think-tank.
The Welsh auditor general has said councils must “get a grip on financial management” as the number of qualified audit opinions has doubled in 2017-18.
The government must improve its oversight of governance in local authorities as they struggle with increased financial and demand pressure, England’s spending watchdog has urged.
The government has side-stepped “the cruellest benefit cut in history” with the latest universal credit changes, according to the chair of the work and pensions committee.
Former servicemen and women suffering from mental illnesses, such as post traumatic stress disorder, will be prioritised for social housing, under new proposals announced by the government.
A no-deal Brexit could cause lasting damage to demand and supply in the economy, with productivity at particular risk from reduced migration, leading economists have warned.
The government should consider redistributing funds from schools with ‘excessive’ surpluses to bolster those with weaker finances, an education think-tank has suggested today.
The number of public bodies in England failing to provide value for money is “unacceptably high” and increasing, the public spending watchdog has warned.
An overhaul of Scottish economic and social policy will be needed in the face of global automation, which threatens a third of jobs by 2030, a leading think-tank has claimed.
