Review - News, Opinion, Briefing & Diary

Councils overwhelmed by health guidance

11-Mar-2010

Councils and PCTs have been snowed under with guidance on reducing health inequalities over the past 12 years, according to the Audit Commission.

Race to claim the future of Total Place

11 March 2010 | By James Illman

EXCLUSIVE: A battle over the future direction of Total Place erupts before ministers are due to unveil their long-awaited report on the programme

LAML fight goes to Supreme Court

11 March 2010 | By James Illman

EXCLUSIVE: Two councils are set for a landmark appearance in the Supreme Court in their battle over the use of the wellbeing power

Public interest in local democracy slumps

11 March 2010 | By Dan Drillsma-Milgrom

A fall in public knowledge and interest in local government and local issues is reported in a new survey

Homeowners face wide variation in care fee help

11 March 2010 | By Jim Dunton

Widespread disparities continue in the way councils help homeowners who need permanent residential or nursing care, LGC research has found

Councils should offer more care cash

11 March 2010 | By Jim Dunton

Councils should be playing a greater role in helping people tap into the equity locked away in their homes to pay for care needs, according to a think tank.

Public money will soon run out

By Tony Travers

The BBC’s portrayal of a hollowed-out Detroit offers a chilling vision of the future for some parts of the UK

'Total Place power' an option

By James Illman

Whatever happens to Total Place, councils need a sound legal footing on which to build innovative partnerships and unlock substantial savings

Time for change

The pace of change in the retail world means a new approach to the high streets is needed, says Retail Week’s Tim Danaher

Thinking about numbers

By Tony Travers

Local government should be almost 15% more efficient than in 2004. How much further can this efficiency go?

We are hopeful the law will be changed

The search to save money while protecting frontline services makes the need for a broad interpretation of the so-called wellbeing power even more critical

Forging a different quality of relationship with citizens

By Matthew Taylor

If local authorities are to improve or even maintain service outcomes in the coming period of austerity they will have to forge a different quality of relationship with citizens

More help now for low-income households

By Matthew Whittaker

Older low-income households with long-term care needs often find themselves in a funding gap: too asset-rich to get council support but too income-poor to pay for care services

Carers must count, too

By Pauline Thompson

Frequent stories in the press of people ‘having to sell their house to pay for care’ rarely mention there are mandatory and discretionary disregards

Power of general competence: a panacea?

It is interesting to note that the Conservatives use the expression ‘general power of competence’ - not a ‘power of general competence’

It's a matter of trust

By Mike More

Senior pay, especially that of chief executives, has become a hot topic that is generating many column inches in the press

Council tax capping must be abolished

By Tony Travers

Ministers need to be able to say ‘these cuts needn’t happen’ as and when they begin to bite

We are at a unique crossroads

It is a great honour to have been elected as the new leader-elect of Labour in local government, says David Sparks