Finance
Councils' loans legal action fails
Councils are considering whether to appeal after a High Court judge threw out a bid to sue Barclays over a number of loans.
Employers branded a 'disgrace' over pay delay
Council employers have been branded a ‘disgrace’ after they said they would not respond to a union pay claim until after the May 6 elections.
Councils to receive £400m to tackle COVID-19
The Government has announced funding of £400m for English councils to support COVID-19 test, trace and contain activity.
Conservative call to ring-fence budget for councils
A new Barnett-type formula should be introduced that would legally mandate the Scottish Government to deliver a ring-fenced percentage of its budget to councils, Conservatives have argued.
Councils defend 'misunderstood' commercial investments
The Government’s clampdown on commercial investments has come under fire from councils.
Northumberland 'concern' over company finances
Northumberland CC is looking to exert more control over its wholly-owned property firm after it posted losses of £30m.
Children’s services face £824m budget gap
The Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS) has said the amount was required just to enable their work to ‘stay still’ amid increasing demand.
Easing the cash flow
Martin Ford looks at the reaction to the first set of capitalisation directions given to councils struggling under the financial weight of COVID.
Working together in perfect harmony
Teams are a blend of personalities and attributes that work together in harmony, 'so don’t assume you won’t fit if you have slightly different skills and experience', says Adele Taylor.
A confirmation of local government’s true resilience
Heather Jameson ponders what the latest CIPFA resilience index tells us about the state of local government finances. It contains 'a curious mix of highly informative and utterly irrelevant information'.
Index reveals funding woes
Most councils allowed to use capital cash to prop up their finances faced problems before the impact of the pandemic hit, new figures have revealed.
Levelling Up Fund to feature rapid bid process
The £4bn cross-departmental Levelling Up Fund will feature a rapid bid process, with all projects having to be completed before the next General Election, The MJ understands.
Minister claims councils' financial issues due to investments
Commercial investments rather than a lack of central funding is at the root of councils’ financial woes, local government minister Luke Hall has claimed.
Warwick to overhaul climate change plans
Warwick DC is to redraw its plans to tackle climate change after abandoning a green tax referendum.
Grant fraud to soar
Grant fraud is expected to soar because of the amount of COVID-19 funding channelled through local government, according to the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA).
Two directors resign from crisis-hit Croydon
Two executive directors have resigned from crisis-hit Croydon LBC after they were suspended earlier this month.
Oxford urged to halt property investment
The Labour administration has rejected calls to scrap £20m spending plans.
Surrey boroughs consider merger
Guildford and Waverley BCs are looking to combine management teams and services in a move driven by ‘brutal’ funding cuts.
Councils walk away from business rates pools amid income fears
Four business rates pools have walked away from the opportunity amid major uncertainty about the future income hit.
Crisis-hit Croydon expected to sell development firm
Senior councillors at crisis-hit Croydon LBC are expected to back moves to sell its controversial developer Brick by Brick.
