Emergency Budget
Councils need financial support to help residents and businesses through crisis
The County Councils Network, alongside others, will be making the strongest case possible to ensure that local government is adequately funded through what is going to be an extremely difficult period, says James Maker.
Council accuses government of ‘betrayal’
Nottingham City Council has charged the Government with reneging on a promise to cover the costs of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Oxfordshire looks to bridge £16m budget gap
The council plans to delay service overhauls in a bid to cover a £16m budget shortfall this year due to the coronavirus crisis.
We must provide Luton with a bright future
Luton BC has agreed a ‘drastic’ emergency budget of £22m savings, and will ‘continue to bang loudly on the Government’s door’ for the finances it needs, says leader Hazel Simmons.
Northants publishes emergency plans to balance books
Troubled Northamptonshire CC has published emergency plans to stabilise its short-term finances by plugging last year’s £35m deficit, balancing its books this year and slashing future costs.
EXCLUSIVE: Councils deplore Government guidance after Grenfell
The Government’s guidance on fire safety after the Grenfell Tower fire has been ‘mediocre,’ ‘contradictory,’ ‘disjointed’ or non-existent, councils have said in response to a Labour survey.
Sadiq Khan: Government must pay for fire safety work on privately-owned blocks
London’s mayor has called upon the Government to pay for remedial work on privately-owned tower blocks in the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower fire.
Council shock at government refusal to fund fire safety work
Nottingham City Council’s disbelief after its request for financial support from the Government to install fire sprinklers in tower blocks was turned down has been made public.
Dealing with disaster
One year on since the tragic events of the Shoreham Air disaster, Sean Ruth, Louise Goldsmith and Penelope Schofield explain how councils and public services responded to the incident and continue to deal with its impact on the local community
Osborne abandons budget surplus plans
Chancellor George Osborne has abandoned plans to run a budget surplus by 2020 as Brexit threatens a ‘significant negative economic shock to our economy’.
Osborne warns of further local government cuts post-Brexit
Local government faces further budget cuts if voters back Brexit in the European Union referendum, chancellor George Osborne has warned.
Government reassurance after pensions petition
Councils will not be forced to invest their pension funds into infrastructure schemes, the Government has confirmed.
Under pressure
Councils were working hard over Christmas to deal with devastating flooding. Yet serious concerns are being raised that climate change could double flood damage in coming years, even with continued spending on flood defences. Thomas Bridge reports
Time to pay your way
Commissioners need funds to pay long-suffering care workers properly, says Ray James.
Districts should welcome Sunday trading powers
One of the policy announcements in the Summer Budget was a proposal to devolve decision-making on Sunday opening hours for larger shops. Ian Miller welcomes the move.
We need to fix roof once and for all
It was John F Kennedy who famously said: ‘The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining’ – and on the face of it this seems to be good advice, Tony Kirkham writes.
Scots, Welsh and NI call for ‘more clarity’ over budgets
Politicians from Britain’s devolved administrations have called for more clarity from Whitehall over the UK Government’s future spending plans.
Funding by results
Government funding will increasingly depend on outcomes, Dan Corry believes.
Don't forget public in devolution rush
The timetable set by George Osborne in his Budget for the first wave of councils to secure devolution is incredibly tight but director of Involve, Simon Burall, urges local government not to forget the public.
Kickstarting the housing revolution
Bob Neill spells out how the Government can deliver on its promise to kickstart the housing revolution.