Cuts during the recession should start with the bill for regulating, SOLACE director general David Clark has claimed. Writing on his blog, Mr Clark accepts there should be cuts made, but says research by SOLACE and accountancy body CIPFA have ‘identified one area I think could be trimmed' without impacting on services. He claims the cost of Whitehall regulating local government is £2.5bn annually – and the cost per authority of reporting to the Government averages £1.8m. ‘This seems a tad unaffordable in these straitened times,' he adds. l See www.solace.org/blog.asp