Whitehall
£95k cap will 'erode council rights'
The looming £95,000 cap on exit payments in the public sector will erode the rights of councils to decide workforce changes, a vice-president of the Local Government Association (LGA) has said.
Auditors poised to qualify accounts over SEND
Auditors are poised to qualify some value for money opinions as a result of spiralling special educational needs and disabilities deficits, The MJ understands.
Future Forum: Business rates retention is doomed
Moves to fund local government using the proceeds from business rates are ‘doomed,’ according to a financial expert.
Spending Review will 'fail to offer long-term view' for sector
This year’s Spending Review will fail to offer a long-term view for local government, The MJ understands.
EXCLUSIVE: Whitehall draws up early warning system
The Government is plotting to create an early warning system alerting Whitehall to councils that may be in trouble, The MJ can reveal.
New oversight body 'dead in the water' without legislation
Sir Tony Redmond’s proposals for a new audit oversight body are ‘dead in the water’ unless the Government devotes some legislative time, a former Section 151 officer has warned.
Council leaders told to start preparing for self-isolation support scheme
English council leaders have been asked to start preparing to implement financial support for people who are required to self-isolate until the end of January.
Decisions over miserly income guarantee deal was ministers’ call
Local government calls for the income guarantee scheme to cover lost sales, fees and charges from the start of lockdown was knocked back by ministers, The MJ understands.
Frustration bubbles over wait for Brexit bonanza
The Government runs the risk of ‘levelling up everywhere at rock bottom’ as uncertainty continues to reign over funding for the regions months after Brexit.
No by-elections before May, ministers confirm
Ministers have confirmed that no by-elections or neighbourhood planning referendums will take place in England before May.
Sector surprise at COVID marshal scheme
Local government has been blindsided by Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s announcement that an army of COVID marshals will enforce tough new rules.
LGA backs mandatory council role in migrant children scheme
Council leaders have backed a government suggestion that the national transfer scheme for unaccompanied migrant children should be compulsory for local authorities.
Down and out?
Plans for a full-scale local government reorganisation have been thrown into doubt, with Downing Street being blamed for delays.
Social care directors ‘envious’ of NHS
A representative of local government social care directors has told MPs they view better-resourced health counterparts with ‘envy’.
Stretched testing capacity to be scaled up
Brand new large-scale technology to increase the number of coronavirus tests that can be processed is being introduced as demand continues to rise.
The restructure we require is not to be found in our town halls
The devolution White Paper will reveal Boris Johnson's 'northern growth body'. But this will have a fatal flaw as its creator is Whitehall, writes Sarah Longlands.
Warning 2021 polls will be 'most challenging' in a generation
Returning officers have been warned they face the ‘most challenging elections to administer in our lifetimes’ next year.
LEPs need capacity boost to improve delivery, research finds
Local enterprise partnerships (LEP) would be better at delivering large-scale capital projects if they had more capacity, independent research for the Government has found.
MHCLG denies blanket plan to scrap districts
The Government has denied it is pursuing the blanket abolition of district councils as part of the Devolution White Paper.
Government could buy up fire risk buildings
The Government has not ruled out compulsorily purchasing buildings with serious fire safety defects if the pace of remediation remains too slow.
