21 January 2020

Want to commission a citizens’ assembly? Here, three councils say ‘go for it’. But there’s a lot to think about – and above all, you need the right issue say Sarah Owens, Isobel Wade and James Moody.

15 January 2020

Local government secretary Robert Jenrick has agreed to talks on the role and functions of a new committee of leaders from across Yorkshire.

15 January 2020

Public servants' role in stewardship of institutions, publicly defining fact and sharing advice, needs updating to take account of our very different world, argues Graeme McDonald.

14 January 2020

The Local Government Association has commissioned research to better understand how greater control of financial and fiscal levers might operate in non-metropolitan areas.

07 January 2020

Full retention of business rates could shoot back up the agenda as part of a long-awaited Government review, The MJ understands.

13 December 2019

Local government was this morning expecting a devolution revolution after Prime Minister Boris Johnson secured a sweeping election win.

12 December 2019

Salt, grit, battery-powered lamps, heaters and jeeps are essential kit at this time of year in the Cotswolds. However Kathy O'Leary is pleased to report that no nativity plays have been harmed in preparing for this election.

27 November 2019

The arguments for creating large unitary authorities have not been developed in an evidence-based way, say Steve Leach and Colin Copus. How can the persistence of ‘reorganisation by stealth’ be explained?

27 November 2019

Heather Jameson says that as we approach 2020, we are greeted by election manifestos appealing more to voters harking back to history, rather than looking toward the future.

20 November 2019

The work of a citizens’ assembly in Cambridge is to become a showcase for other councils looking at adopting the concept.

13 November 2019

One thing canvassers might remember is that voters ‘are free-thinking individuals who can change our minds if we hear a better argument’, says Claire Fox.

30 October 2019

County councils are being offered the option of unitary local government as part of a devolution deal, The MJ understands.

16 October 2019

Wirral MBC is legally obliged to abolish its leader and cabinet model and adopt a committee system by May 2020, following a town hall vote.

15 October 2019

The first article in this series set out the context for restoring local democracy in Scotland. Lead author Keith Yates explains what followed and outlines the approach to the 1996 reorganisation.

15 October 2019

There are a raft of measures that could improve the under-representation of women in our council chambers - many of which are set out by the Fawcett Society, says Claire Kober.

15 October 2019

Local government must be the glue that mends the broken bonds of our communities, writes Donna Hall.

15 October 2019

Heather Jameson says the Queen’s Speech could be the shortest-lived legislative plan in history – but if the Government has time to deliver just some of the measures there is lots of legislation for local government

14 October 2019

The Queen’s Speech has set out the Government’s plans to require voters to show photographic ID at polling stations.

13 October 2019

Plans to introduce voter ID across the whole country have been branded ‘dangerous, misguided and undemocratic’ by the Electoral Reform Society (ERS).

11 October 2019

A former SNP minister has suggested there could be a relaxation of the cap on council tax.