Government edicts aimed at boosting openness and transparency across town halls threaten to set local government efficiency back many years, experts have warned.

In a letter obtained by The MJ, the District Councils' Network (DCN) has written to the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) complaining that regulations issued last month, giving the public greater access to meetings and information, represent a ‘logistical and administrative challenge'. Council legal chiefs express ‘grave concern' at a section of the regulations, which took effect 10 September, requiring council officers to produce a written statement covering any executive decision.