What really caused the council funding crisis?
Max Mosley, NIESR, explores the origins of the local government funding crisis and warns the next government will have to act quickly to address it.
Newcastle moves cycle barriers that blocked disabled access
04/04/2024 Newcastle City Council has agreed to move a set of barriers after a disabled cyclist raised concerns that the design constituted indirect discrimination. |
Sunderland autonomous shuttle prepares for launch
05/03/2024 Self-driving shuttles have arrived in Sunderland and are set to transport passengers around the city this spring. |
Two thirds of Housing Infrastructure Fund left unspent
05/01/2024 Two-thirds of the £4.2bn Housing Infrastructure Fund remains unspent more than six years after its launch, despite the housing shortage, according to reports. |
Brum keeps shtum over funding axe reasons
06/12/2023 Birmingham CC has received a document setting out ministers’ reasons for pulling funding from its £2.7bn highways PFI contract but has refused to disclose it. |
Government axes Brum's £2.7bn PFI deal in shock 'betrayal'
01/12/2023 Birmingham City Council's leader has accused the Government of 'betrayal' by axing the authority's £2.7bn highways Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contract, in a move that could lose the authority more than £500m of roads investment. |
Autumn Statement: Planning system to prioritise EV charging
22/11/2023 The Autumn Statement gave a major boost to the electric vehicle (EV) market with £2bn of investment and a pledge to reform the planning system. |
Major road network set for £2.6bn second funding round
03/11/2023 A promised £2.6bn for local road upgrades will be in the form of a second round of major road network (MRN) funding, it has emerged. |
DfT teases more detail on multi-billion roads spending plans
03/11/2023 The Department for Transport has given fresh detail on the £8.3bn of ‘additional’ local highway maintenance funding due to HS2 cuts. |
Costain named strategic partner on Bradford's £250m investment plan
30/10/2023 Costain has been reappointed as Bradford Council’s strategic delivery partner, in a contract worth up to £5m with an initial run of two years. |
Exclusive: DfT drops self-assessment process
10/10/2023 The Department for Transport has ended the highways self-assessment process, removing the incentive element of local maintenance capital funding. |
PM delays new petrol and diesel ban to 2035
21/09/2023 PM Rishi Sunak has delayed the Government's ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and vans from 2030 to 2035. |
Street Manager limitations cost councils millions
08/09/2023 The Local Government Association has released a report it buried three years ago covering the financial impact of the Government's Street Manager software. |
DfT faces Court of Appeal challenge over kerb heights
16/08/2023 A disability campaigner has won the right to take her case to the Court of Appeal in battle over the Department for Transport's minimum kerb height guidance. |
Labour U-turns on support for clean air zones
14/08/2023 Labour has scrapped its public support for ULEZ-style clean air zones across the country. |
Majority of ULEZ scrappage scheme remains unclaimed
09/08/2023 More than £71.5m of the original £110m pot for the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) scrappage scheme has gone unclaimed, new figues have revealed. |
Transport planners write to PM in defence of LTNs
09/08/2023 The Transport Planning Society (TPS) has written to the PM in defence of low traffic neighbourhoods in the wake of the Government's push-back. |
Budget 2023: Hunt confirms £200m for 'potholes curse'
15/03/2023 Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has confirmed a further £200m in 2023-24 to tackle what he described as ‘the curse of potholes’. |
Government releases planning reform 'action plan'
24/02/2023 The Government has published an Action Plan setting out reforms to the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIP) regime. |
Council blocked by DfT over 'unlawful' speed enforcement
10/02/2023 The Government has stepped in to block Wandsworth Council from attempting to enforce a 20mph speed limit in its borough. |
Public EV network under pressure from electricity price rise
10/01/2023 RAC and FairCharge have called on the Government to slash the VAT rate at public electric vehicle chargers after new data shows increase in charger costs. |
Recuriter: London Borough of Richmond upon Thames and London Borough of Wandsworth
Shell is helping power the journey towards a circular paving industry with Shell Bitumen LT R, a new product for roads that uses plastics destined for landfill as part of the additives to make the bitumen.
Effective Energy Group is now offering its support to the 40 Local Authorities who have received a share of the £430m to deliver their projects on the ground by surveying properties and installing measures.
Dougie Belmore explains how one of the main interfaces between you and Bacs is about to change.
