PAC
MHCLG will not recover £36m overpayments
Millions of pounds overpaid to local authorities by the Government will not be recovered, Marsham Street has confirmed.
MHCLG: A lot can be gained from unitary
A unitary structure could save money and improve effectiveness, top civil servants have said in their clearest signal yet of a Government view on reorganisation.
Dawes: Spending Review limit on long-term funding deal
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) officials have backed the concept of a long-term funding deal for the sector but offered no future guarantees.
CIPFA plea on LEP principles
The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) has appealed for help as it draws up principles for officers dealing with local enterprise partnerships (LEP).
Dawes: MHCLG could improve Whitehall engagement
Marsham Street’s most senior civil servant has admitted the department could be more structured in its engagement with the rest of Whitehall.
Dawes: Another Section 114 possible
Marsham Street's top official has told MPs she cannot give them a ‘categorical assurance’ there will not be another Northamptonshire-style collapse.
MPs call for 'credible, long-term plan' for social care
MPs have called on ministers to outline a ‘credible, long-term plan’ to reverse the perception of English social care as a ‘source of national shame’.
Javid and Gwynne clash over finance settlement
Communities secretary Sajid Javid clashed today with his Labour rival Andrew Gwynne over errors in the provisional settlement as he saw off a threatened rebellion.
Former LEP chair accused of cover-up over deal
MPs have accused an ex-local enterprise partnership (LEP) chairman of a ‘cover up’ after he refused to reveal details of a deal to develop taxpayer-funded land.
Auditors in fresh LEP warning
A National Audit Office (NAO) report on the Greater Cambridge Greater Peterborough (GCGP) LEP has warned that the Government’s ability to respond to failure was ‘limited’.
Government backs sector-led improvement for children's services
The Department for Education (DfE) has signalled a major policy shift with a £20m investment for a new programme of sector-led improvement for children’s services.
DCLG ‘light-touch’ fuels homeless rise
Soaring homelessness levels have been described as a ‘national scandal’ after auditors warned ministers were failing to evaluate the impact of their reforms.
Fears as new era of metro mayors dawns
Local government big hitters have voiced concerns about the accountability, effectiveness and necessity of the incoming combined authority mayors.
Authorities ‘must take control of integrated care models’
Local authorities must take more responsibility for their poor performance in delivering integrated care models, MPs have warned.
PAC: Government lacks ambition on housing
The Government lacks the necessary ambition to solve the housing crisis and is overly reliant on a ‘broken’ market to deliver the homes people need, MPs have argued.
Adults with learning disabilities work comes under scrutiny
Councils must do more to measure outcomes and improvements to quality of life for adults with learning disabilities, MPs have urged.
Whitehall holding up public estate plans
Local authorities will have helped create 25,000 new homes by 2020 as part of a Whitehall programme to make more efficient use of public buildings, auditors have confirmed.
75% fail to meet fees deadline
Almost three-quarters of councils did not notify providers of disability care about their 2016/17 fees in a timely fashion, Care England has claimed.
Whitehall may step in over authorities’ commercial deals
The Government may intervene to lower the risks associated with the increased commercial activities of local authorities, it has been suggested.
Assessment timeframe ‘not possible’
Whitehall cannot fully assess the success of local government’s role in resettling Syrian refugees until next year, officials have warned.