If we are to stand any chance of breaking the ‘necklace of neglect’ encircling swathes of the UK, we need a heavy-hitting minister to fight for a non-metropolitan urban agenda, says Peter...
The chancellor hasn’t ended austerity. And he’s also missed the opportunity to have an honest conversation with the public about how he plans to pay for public services, says the Institute for...
Philip Hammond faced up to some political and economic conundrums in his first Autumn Budget. Former Treasury adviser Dan Corry considers how well he passed the test.
The chancellor told the Commons austerity is “coming to an end” today, announcing funding boosts for the Ministry of Defence to the tune of £1bn and adult social care of £650m.
The end of austerity is unlikely to happen any time soon without tax increases - but what would be helpful is an overhaul of the current spending review framework, says CIPFA’s Alan Bermingham.
Devolution offers a solution to mitigate local government’s powers being stripped back to ‘core offers’ focused on social care but it needs funding to do so, says IPPR North’s Anna Round.
Fiscal devolution and a reconfiguration of political economy in localities will become the battleground of domestic policy in the post-Brexit general election, argues Jonathan Werran.
Theresa May’s speech to the Conservative Party Conference yesterday showed more political will to bring a close to austerity rather than an actual end, writes Resolution Foundation director...
Commercialisation has become the most talked about topic in councils this year, with some seeing turnover equivalent to a FTSE 250 company, according to research gathered by Zurich Municipal.
The public’s attitude to austerity has changed. With costs and inflation rising, the public sector needs good leadership and sound financial management more than ever.
Councils could make as much £14.7bn in savings through greater digitisation of services, a review by the Public Service Transformation Network and the think-tank Nesta has found.
Shadow chancellor John McDonnell has announced the creation of an economic advisory committee to help the Labour Party develop its anti-austerity public spending and taxation plans.
Finance ministers from the UK’s three devolved administrations have issued a joint warning that UK government plans will cut spending “too fast and too far” and present a risk to...
Whatever the election brings, something that feels like austerity will continue. George Osborne’s tenure at the Treasury has locked Britain into permanently lower taxes and smaller government
The cuts imposed on councils are too steep, happening too fast and unfairly distributed. There needs to be real-terms growth in the resources given to local government and distribution according to...
The government’s Universal Credit benefit reform is likely to encourage more claimants into work, but could see them choosing to work shorter hours, at considerable cost to the Treasury, a Resolution...
Councils face a 6% cut in spending power next year once ring-fenced funds and pooled resources are excluded from the Local Government Finance Settlement, an analysis by CIPFA has found.
