Local authorities in England and Wales are set to impose the lowest-ever council tax rise this year, according to CIPFA – although experts are warning of financial trouble ahead
Local authorities facing losses following the collapse of the Icelandic banks are challenging the government’s ‘irrational’ decision to allow only some councils to spread their losses
Safeguarding the budgets of health and education could leave unprotected public services facing cuts of up to 50%. Wouldn’t it be fairer to plug the fiscal hole by ‘salami-slicing’ the whole lot,...
The first reports from 13 pilot projects provide a wealth of data. One thing is clear: public services focus too much on symptoms and too little on causes
Funding to expand free nursery education for all should be redirected to only help children from the poorest families, according to report published today
Unequal Britain can’t be changed simply by giving individuals ‘opportunities’, argues Lisa Harker. It needs a government prepared to invest in more skilled jobs for the future and to narrow the...
Following a government green paper, defence professionals are coming to terms with inevitable budget cuts and are asking where they would hit least hard. Lucy Phillips reports
Public sector organisations face a bill of more than £40bn in Private Finance Initiative charges over the lifetime of the next Parliament – as part of a £217bn total liability stretching over three...
Measures announced by local government minister Rosie Winterton to put councils at the heart of tackling youth unemployment have been criticised as being a ‘band aid’ to a larger problem and ‘lacking...
Cases of public sector fraud and data manipulation are set to increase over the coming months as government spending cuts put more pressure on managers to meet performance targets, experts have...
Universities should stop ‘bleating’ about funding cuts because squeezed budgets will have a worse impact on further education provision, college leaders have said.
The recession is officially over. But the misery will continue when the next government has to decide between continuing economic life support or paying off the debt. Peter Riddell asks which party...
Finance Minister John Swinney has won parliamentary approval for Scotland’s £35bn spending plans after making eleventh-hour concessions to opposition parties
