Funding
Wirral assurance panel ‘no longer required’
Wirral MBC’s Independent Assurance Panel (IAP) has officially stood down after declaring it was ‘no longer required’.
DEFRA withholds £6m of air quality funding
Around £6m in funding promised to local authorities to help tackle air pollution will be withheld, a Government spokesperson has confirmed.
Scottish councils’ debt is one-and-a-half times funding
The debt of councils in Scotland is more than one-and-a-half times the latest local government funding settlement, the Scottish Conservatives have found.
Clear and present danger
Public protection services have enormous benefits for communities – but they are in crisis. Derek Allen sets out strategies for securing more investment and support.
Let’s restart the housing debate
Key Cities’ manifesto details nine policy recommendations to help councils address the housing shortage – and the next Government must begin introducing targets on day one, says Lorna Fielker.
Net zero: Something more radical is needed
We need to harness national, regional and local public sector leadership that engages with citizens in neighbourhoods on what moving to net zero will mean for communities, says Jon Rowney.
Ready for a bright new dawn?
Rachel Reeves’ Mais lecture represented a clear shift away from New Labour towards an active state, a muscular industrial strategy and ambitious regional policy, say Mike Emmerich and Ben Lucas.
Hail our local heroes
Councils have proven their mettle – now give them the trust and respect they deserve, writes Baroness Sharon Taylor.
Scottish councils in tax U-turn
Argyll and Bute and Inverclyde councils had both voted to raise tax in defiance of the Scottish Government's efforts to secure a nationwide freeze.
Supporting communities together
Genuine collaboration between housing associations and councils can help them meet their combined ambitions for communities and neighbourhoods, says Felicity Hunt.
Complex funding stymies net-zero push
A ‘complex web’ of hard-to-reach Whitehall funding pots is hampering councils’ net-zero initiatives – with two-thirds of town halls not confident of hitting crucial targets.
Reflections on the West Midlands trailblazer devo deal one year on
Ed Cox sets out his five takeaways from the first year of the West Midlands trailblazer devolution deal.
Future Forum: ‘Hope’ for council tax overhaul
Labour could be presented with an opportunity to reform council tax if election polls are borne out, The MJ’s Future Forum has heard.
PAC: Government has ‘no roadmap’ for fixing social care
The Government has ‘no roadmap’ for fixing the failing social care system and ‘nothing meaningful’ in place that might demonstrate progress, MPs have warned.
Can the Liverpool city region seize its golden moment?
A Manifesto for Liverpool City Region addresses the economic, social, environmental and political challenges facing the next UK Government, say Dr Tom Arnold and Dr James Hickson.
Sticking plasters for a wound
Short-term funding and decision-making does not solve the underlying issues surrounding children’s services. It only stores up more pressure for the future says John Pearce.
Choice of a new generation
Now is a pivotal moment for councils to start developing strategies to engage with Generation Z, and in doing so start to rethink the future of local government, says Victoria Evans.
Growing pains
With local growth high on the political agenda, Ben Franklin sets out his recipe for success.
Wanted: fiscal reform not fiscal frustration
'To bemoan any Government’s inability to take difficult political decisions when it has been in power for 14 years is to wriggle out of collective responsibility', says Heather Jameson.
Pothole-riddled roads need £16bn investment, study finds
The condition of roads in England and Wales has continued to decline despite councils spending £144m filling in two million potholes this financial year.
