Act as a united sector on commercialisation - or face regulations
If local authorities act with individual self-interest in the pursuit of commercial ventures, they could ruin it for the whole sector, warns Abdool Kara.
Opinion
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Cut the benefit bill by investing in social housing
September 20, 2017
It is rare for ministers to plan beyond the lifetime of a parliament. There are exceptions: automatic pension enrolment introduced from 2012 by the then Liberal Democrat minister Steve Webb is one example of a politician taking a long-term view [..]
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Devolution is dead: Long live devolution
September 19, 2017
Rumours of the death of devolution have been greatly exaggerated, it would seem, if the secretary of state is to be believed.
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Working together
September 19, 2017
If districts and counties can overcome their differences, they can use their collective knowledge to achieve extraordinary improvements that neither could bring about on their own, writes Paul Smith.
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Latest Ombudsman's report reignites the outsourcing debate
September 6, 2017
The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman’s recent report, Lifting the lid on bin complaints, has reignited the debate around outsourced services and whether local government gets value for money from such contracts.
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We must publicise the benefits of working in local government
Young people are not attracted to local government. The sector has to change that, argues Sandra Dinneen
A model for change
Byron Rhodes argues the need for a shake-up of the local government funding model, and Chris Tambini outlines Leicestershire CC’s radical proposals.
Shared services 10 years on
It’s been 10 years since Adur DC and Worthing BC became the first to share all their services, and ever since there’s been a steady stream of followers. Alex Bailey explains how the union signals more than just budgets savings.
Decreasing Whitehall’s dominance
Lord Porter makes an impassioned case for devolution, arguing local and central government cannot deliver more than the sum of their parts without urgent reform.
Local government has failed to offer a stirring vision of the future
Imagination is needed more than ever in local government, writes Ed Cox.
Authorities must renew focus on scrutiny and risk assessment
The challenge for local authorities is to ensure they can continue to be enterprising, outward-facing, process-light organisations without ever losing that important focus on strong governance and risk awareness, says Michael Burton.
From the archive
Culture change
Paul Woods on the need to create lasting and independent and lasting income steams for council cultural facilities
Improving scrutiny in the public and private sector
Local scrutiny can build local coalitions of concern, says Paul Wheeler.
Decisions, decisions….
Jane Martin, explains how good public administration can help to ensure the public's confidence in local government.