Whitehall
Amey facing £200m Birmingham divorce bill
Amey may have to pay more than £200m to extricate itself from its troubled 25-year PFI contract with Birmingham City Council after years of legal difficulties, according to national newspaper reports.
Cook boils over about 'crippling' uncertainty
Stockton-on-Tees BC’s leader, Cllr Bob Cook, has damned the ‘crippling’ uncertainty surrounding how local government will be funded in future.
Concerns raised over waste consultation length
Concerns have been raised that the consultation period on three major pieces of policy could be slashed from the standard 12 weeks.
Hammond must not take the sector for granted
Chancellor Philip Hammond must ensure local government does not face a crisis similar to those in the prison service and justice system, says Michael Burton
Brokenshire slams door on One Yorkshire plan
Communities secretary James Brokenshire has told regional leaders that their plans for a One Yorkshire metro mayor fails to meet the Government’s devolution criteria.
EXCLUSIVE: Chiefs' no-deal Brexit capacity warning
Council capacity will be stretched under a no-deal Brexit scenario, local authority chief executives have warned the Government.
Think-tanks float extra council tax flexibility
Local government faces another period of tough budget settlements but could be granted more freedom to raise local revenues, according to a report on options for this year’s Spending Review by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) and the Institute for Government.
Brokenshire announces new integration measures
Communities secretary James Brokenshire has announced new measures to promote integration as the UK moves closer to life outside of the EU.
Labour would create local government commission
Labour would create a new commission that would allow councillors to influence every decision that affects local authorities if they won a General Election.
Truss backs fiscal devolution
Chief secretary to the Treasury, Liz Truss, has given her backing to further fiscal devolution.
Porter: Grenfell is sector's biggest shame
The chairman of the Local Government Association (LGA) has expressed his regret at being unable to make enough of a difference after the Grenfell Tower fire.
Local government director general to leave ministry
The director general of local government Dr Jo Farrar is to leave the ministry later this year, it has been announced.
MPs criticise Whitehall 'complacency' over inadequate children's services
A top mandarin has been accused of ‘complacency’ by MPs over the time taken to improve children’s services.
Call for tourism tax review
An inquiry into cultural investment in cities has called for a UK-wide review of the benefits of a tourism tax.
Auditor warning over Spelthorne spending
Auditor KPMG has warned of a ‘significant risk’ in the way Spelthorne BC controversially bought a BP business park for £385m.
Council calls for Hancock intervention
Telford & Wrekin Council has called for health secretary Matt Hancock to urgently intervene in a decision to reconfigure hospital services.
Business rates inquiry launched by MPs
MPs are to look at alternatives to business rates as part of an inquiry.
Council to take legal action over Local Plan delay
Stevenage BC will request a judicial review as the Government continues to hold up its Local Plan.
EXCLUSIVE: Brokenshire gets Brexit breakdown from chiefs
Chief executives have told communities secretary James Brokenshire Whitehall needs to be more joined up between departments and in its communications with councils over Brexit.
Health secretary seeking cross-party support for care funding
A range of funding options will be laid out in the adult social care Green Paper in a bid to find the method with the widest support, health secretary Matt Hancock has said.