Dan Peters
Dawes: Ministry could have done more responding to Grenfell
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government’s (MHCLG) top official has admitted the department ‘could have done more’ in response to the Grenfell Tower fire.
Councils and union clash over zero-hour contracts
Councils have insisted on keeping the option of zero-hour contracts as Unison prepares to push the sector’s associations to back a campaign to abolish them.
EXCLUSIVE: £95k exit cap regulations are 'lawyers' charter to print money'
Government regulations introducing a £95,000 cap on local government exit payments are a ‘lawyers’ charter to print money,’ the trade union representing the most senior managers in the sector is expected to tell Whitehall.
Pensions Infrastructure Platform optimistic despite Brexit
A vehicle designed to encourage council pension schemes to invest in UK infrastructure will not launch a fresh fund this year but remains optimistic.
Council finding it 'harder to identify and deliver savings'
Knowsley MBC is finding it ‘harder to identify and deliver savings’ given the scale of Government funding cuts, senior councillors will be told next week.
Councils to appeal 'town hall Pravdas' ruling
Waltham Forest and Hackney LBCs will appeal after a judge backed Government attempts to stop them publishing a council newspaper every two weeks.
No new cash for Greater Manchester local industrial strategy
A former senior civil servant and council chief has questioned the impact of Greater Manchester’s local industrial strategy after it came with no new money.
Savings scepticism over election reforms
Election professionals have expressed scepticism that expected savings from reforming the annual canvass will offset the need for Government funding for individual electoral registration (IER).
Call for Liverpool intervention after mayoral review frustration
Liverpool City Council’s Lib Dem leader has called for the Government to intervene after he claimed the authority blocked his attempts to review the elected mayor position.
Information sharing tensions found in child harm review
Legal and ethical tensions between maintaining confidentiality and sharing information are continuing, a review of some of the most serious child protection cases in Scotland has found.
Transformation ‘largely left to smoulder on the back burner’
Five years ago the Service Transformation Challenge Panel was launched with the aim of delivering better outcomes in local public services. But a new report notes little progress since the UK EU membership referendum.
Government bidding culture attacked
The growing trend of forcing councils to bid for small, policy-specific grants has been attacked as an ‘inefficient use of public resources’ by a think-tank.
EXCLUSIVE: Unison to make 'bold' pay claim
Unison is poised to ask local government employers for a 10% pay rise in a ‘bold’ claim being submitted for 2020/21, The MJ has learnt.
Council hits back after MP calls for abolition
Telford & Wrekin Council has said calls from an MP for its abolition are an ‘insult to democracy and residents’.
New not-for-profit audit supplier suggested
A not-for-profit audit supplier could be created to work alongside existing and any new firms entering the market, it has been suggested.
Council to 'fully investigate' complaints after sexism claims
Stratford-on-Avon DC has said it will ‘fully investigate complaints of inappropriate behaviour’ after its outgoing head of paid service claimed it had a sexist culture.
Council preparations for Brexit 'hampered' by Whitehall
Whitehall’s lack of focus and co-ordination ‘hampered’ councils’ preparations for Brexit in the run-up to April 12, a Local Government Association (LGA) report has said.
Call for leader to quit after 'repeated failures'
Shadow local government secretary Andrew Gwynne has called for Northamptonshire CC leader, Matt Golby, to quit after ‘repeated failures’ in the council’s children’s services.
Woodford moves to reassure Kent after trading suspension
City heavyweight Neil Woodford has sought to reassure Kent CC and other investors after they were blocked from withdrawing from his multi-billion pound fund.
EXCLUSIVE: NAO to wade into fair funding review
The National Audit Office (NAO) is gearing up to scrutinise the Government’s divisive fair funding review, The MJ can reveal.