Austerity | LocalGov

Scottish Budget 'not good' for communities

28/02/2024

Next year’s Scottish Budget is ‘not good’ for communities, council leaders have said.

Brum set to sell off £750m of assets

20/02/2024

Cash-strapped Birmingham City Council is set to sell off £750m of assets and cut spending on services by £300m in an effort to balance the books.

Bradford warns of possible s114

15/12/2023

Bradford Council has warned that it will have to issue an s114 notice, effectively declaring bankruptcy, unless the Government provides ‘exceptional’ support.

Can local government take much more?

27/11/2023

Dr Andrew Walker, head of Research, LGIU reflects on the Autumn Statement and asks: what might it take for the Government to pay attention to local authorities?

Autumn Statement: Councils remain ‘chronically underfunded’

23/11/2023

Support for private renters, devolution, and planning departments is welcome but councils remain ‘chronically underfunded’, council chiefs tell Chancellor.

Council U-turns on decision to close 39 facilities

04/10/2023

North Lanarkshire Council has reversed its plan to close 39 community facilities after Scotland’s First Minister blasted the decision as ‘short sighted’.

Brum kicks off job cuts

27/09/2023

Birmingham City Council has started a wide-ranging programme of job cuts under emergency plans.

Cash-strapped councils forced to sell £15bn of assets

21/09/2023

About 75,000 public assets worth £15bn have been sold by cash-strapped English councils since 2010, according to Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR).

Estimated £36bn needed to combat poverty

06/09/2023

The Government needs to find £36bn to combat poverty effectively, according to the cross-party Poverty Strategy Commission.

Poor pandemic planning criticised

13/06/2023

Public health directors have criticised the Government’s Covid-19 preparedness – warning Whitehall must utilise council expertise to avoid repeat.

Austerity left Britain ‘unprepared' for pandemic, TUC say

06/06/2023

Years of austerity left Britain 'hugely unprepared' for the COVID pandemic with tragic consequences, union leaders have claimed.

Scottish councils ‘uniquely placed’ to assist reform

17/05/2023

Councils are well-placed to deliver the key aims of Scotland’s government – such as tackling child poverty and net zero – but need funding, experts warn.

Austerity undermined local response to COVID-19, study finds

31/03/2023

The hollowing-out of local capability by a decade of cuts left local government struggling to cope with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, a new study says.

Over 50% of councils set to cut spending on services

07/03/2023

Half of councils are planning to cut spending on services, increase commercial investments or spend their reserves to make ends meet this year, poll reveals.

Unions warn many school buildings ‘at risk of collapse’

16/02/2023

A 50% decline in spending on school buildings over the last decade has left many of them unfit for the future, seven education unions have warned.

Eastleigh finance review to start

07/02/2023

The Government has commissioned a review of Eastleigh BC’s finances to start this week after concerns over its debt levels.

Welsh councils need to encourage resilience, auditors say

24/01/2023

Local authorities in Wales must do more to encourage and grow community resilience against a backdrop of cuts, auditors have said.

Austerity 2.0: digital public services in tough times

19/01/2023

Ainga Pillai, CEO of Zaizi, looks at how councils can improve digital public services when money is tight.

Cash-strapped council seeks to sell number plate to popstar

19/01/2023

East Renfrewshire Council hopes to sell a rare number plate to the global pop superstar Harry Styles in an attempt to reduce its £30m budget gap.

Derby museums warn of ‘devastating’ cuts

09/01/2023

Museums in Derby have warned that planned cuts by the city council could have a ‘devastating effect’ on their services.

Scottish council chiefs issue SOS call

05/12/2022

Local authority leaders in Scotland today launched a campaign ahead of the Scottish budget calling on Holyrood to Save our Services.

Domestic abuse survivors face ‘postcode lottery’

29/11/2022

Survivors of domestic abuse face a ‘postcode lottery’ when it comes to accessing support services across England and Wales, a new study has revealed.

One third of surveyed single parents skipping meals

25/11/2022

Single parents are being forced to skip meals because of the cost of living crisis, new research reveals.

Council leader warns of cuts to close £22m budget gap

22/11/2022

Herefordshire Council leader yesterday wrote to the PM warning the local authority will have to make ‘difficult decisions’ to close a £22m budget gap.

Council chiefs warn of impending cuts

11/11/2022

Council chiefs warn ‘everything on the table’ when it comes to cuts as poll reveals only one in five county councils are confident of balancing their budgets.

Devon council leader warns of ‘deep cuts’

02/11/2022

Devon County Council’s leader has warned the council will have to make ‘deep cuts’ to the county’s local services unless the Government provides more help.

London councils face £700m funding gap

01/11/2022

Councils in London will be forced to find £700m of savings unless the Government boosts funding for local services in the capital, cross-party group says.

Chancellor warned local services ‘on a cliff-edge’

01/11/2022

Local authority leaders have urged the PM ahead of the upcoming autumn statement to ensure that councils have the funding necessary to protect services.

Councils face £3bn funding gap

31/10/2022

Local authorities could be forced to cut essential services as they face a collective funding gap of over £3bn, Unison warns.

Council chiefs warn against ‘devastating’ cuts

27/10/2022

Further cuts to local government funding will mean that councils will only be able to offer the ‘bare minimum’ of local services, county council leaders warn.

Public health budget slashed by a quarter, charity reveals

26/10/2022

A charity has warned against cuts to public health as an analysis reveals that austerity under Conservative governments has hit the poorest the hardest.

Councils warn of £2.5bn ‘threat’ to services

04/10/2022

Two thirds of surveyed councils said they either faced a ‘threat’ to or ‘extreme pressure’ on key service delivery over the next financial year, poll reveals.

Council warns of 20% cuts to cope with financial crisis

30/06/2022

Oxford City Council has said that they are facing ‘tough choices’ over the coming months due to the pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis.

Local government austerity linked to poor health

24/06/2022

Local authority cuts have been a significant driver of poor health outcomes at the local level, according to new research.

England’s poorest areas hit hardest by austerity

03/05/2022

Residents living in England’s most deprived areas were hit hardest by the largest local authority spending cuts during a decade of austerity, think tank says.

Councils need radical thinking at a time of crisis

14/04/2022

Professor Richard Murphy says councils need to cooperate to tackle the crises faced by communities, and he puts forward four ways of addressing social need.

DLUHC 'almost wilfully blind' to state of local government finances warn MPs

31/01/2022

A ‘chronic’ lack of funding for council services amid soaring demand means many communities face a ‘long slog’ out of the COVID-19 pandemic, MPs warned today.

Human rights group warns of ‘uninhabitable’ temporary accommodation

18/01/2022

Children in London growing up in ‘uninhabitable’ temporary accommodation due to Government-imposed austerity and the housing crisis, human rights group warns.

Mind the gap between levelling up ‘rhetoric and reality’, think tank warns

17/01/2022

Central Government policies have undermined the ‘levelling up’ agenda and left the UK more regionally divided than ever, a new study says.

Commission calls for funding re-set for local government

20/07/2021

Local government needs a ‘funding floor’, set at an agreed percentage of national income, a report on the future of the sector has said.

Leeds council proposes nearly 200 job cuts

20/11/2020

Leeds City Council has warned that it might have to cut 199 full time posts in order to save £17.6m as it deal with the impact of the pandemic and austerity.

Think tank calls for new health and social care tax

11/11/2020

A new health and social care tax raising £17bn should be the centrepiece of sweeping tax increases to raise £40bn a year, according to a new report from think-tank the Resolution Foundation.

Luton forced into unavoidable cuts

17/06/2020

Luton BC’s boss has said the council has done all it can but has no other choice than to cut 365 jobs and frontline services.

Youth service funding cut by 70% over decade

20/01/2020

A whole generation of young people have been ‘robbed’ of youth centres due to cuts, a union has warned.

Campaigners call for more support for council-owned farms

16/12/2019

Campaigners have called on the new Government to stop the sale of council-owned county farms and to ‘give them a new purpose’.

Decade of austerity sees dramatic drop in library spending

06/12/2019

Ten years of cuts to public services has seen a nearly 30% drop in library spending, new research has revealed.

Party commitments on council funding ‘starkly’ different, think tank says

03/12/2019

Money allocated to local government in the Conservative manifesto would not be enough to meet rising costs over the next parliament, think tank says.

Think tank calls for ‘devolution parliament’

20/11/2019

Think tank calls for the delivery of a ‘devolution parliament’ in order to address the economic, environmental and democratic challenges facing the UK.

Shropshire Council warns of £6m overspend

20/11/2019

Shropshire Council has announced a spending freeze until the end of the year after warning that it faced a multi-million pound overspend.

Half of local government workers worry about redundancy as a result of cuts

14/11/2019

Around 50% of local government workers worry that they could be made redundant by technological innovation or Government cuts, a survey has revealed.

Caerphilly council agrees 7% council tax hike

14/11/2019

A county council in Wales has agreed a package of savings proposals which include a council tax increase of nearly 7%.

Food bank use ‘shoots up’ by a quarter in one year

14/11/2019

The number of people using food banks has shot up by nearly a quarter in the last year, according to one of the main providers.

Supporting evidence-based policymaking

17/10/2019

Andrew Carter explains how new guidance will help councils decide what services should be prioritised in the wake of swinging cuts.

Treasury 'wasting money' in funding of local government

17/09/2019

The Treasury is wasting money in its funding of local government and needs to have a more place-based focus, according to a report from the respected Institute for Government (IfG) think-tank.

Welsh ministers call for ‘end of austerity’

30/08/2019

Local government leaders across Wales have joined with ministers to call for an end to austerity.

£5.2bn council funding gap is 'underestimate', says LGA

22/08/2019

The Local Government Association (LGA) will argue the sector faces a £5.2bn funding gap in 2020/21 despite believing figure is an underestimate.

Local government cuts forcing children to grow up in poverty, Labour say

15/07/2019

Millions of children are growing up in poverty because of Whitehall cuts to council funding, Labour says after research reveals extent of childhood poverty.

Next PM has ‘100 days’ to save local government

15/07/2019

A think tank has called on the next Prime Minister to announce a one year emergency local government finance settlement during their first 100 days in office.

UC payment delays should be no more than a week, MPs say

11/07/2019

Two independent MPs have called for Universal Credit payments to begin within a week of registering for the benefit.

Austerity creating ‘crisis of childhood’, charity warns

09/07/2019

Funding cuts mean support has been diverted away from early help services into protecting children at immediate risk of harm, council leaders have warned.

Think tank calls for creation of ‘investment state’

03/07/2019

A think tank has called for an end to austerity and the creation of an ‘investment state’ to help boost economic growth.

Crisis-hit Northants delivers balanced budget with £4.5m underspend

03/07/2019

Northamptonshire County Council yesterday announced it had delivered a balanced budget for this financial year with an underspend of £4.5m.

Spending Review should put aside £3bn for children's services say MPs

30/04/2019

The Government needs to release at least £3bn of non-ring-fenced funding to local authorities to save children’s services from the ‘crisis’ they are in, MPs have said.

Poll reveals ‘rising tide’ of pupil poverty

15/03/2019

A shocking new survey of headteachers has revealed that schools have become an ‘unofficial fourth emergency service’ for poor and vulnerable children.

Austerity is gutting services ‘vital’ to women’s lives, report reveals

07/03/2019

Austerity has hit women the hardest with funding for women’s refuges, social care and youth and children’s services slashed, a new report has found.

Spending Review ‘make or break’ for cash-strapped councils

11/02/2019

Local government leaders have warned the Chancellor that the upcoming Spending Review will ‘make or break’ over-stretched council services.

Nearly £1bn cut from Scottish authorities in past eight years

05/02/2019

Funding cuts are finally beginning to take their toll as Scottish councils can no longer protect services, according to report published today.

Anderson quits Northern Powerhouse Partnership in frustration

10/12/2018

Former chancellor George Osborne has voiced sympathy with Liverpool mayor Joe Anderson’s decision to quit the Northern Powerhouse Partnership.

Council's 'core offer' still leaves £33m deficit

05/11/2018

East Sussex CC’s chief executive Becky Shaw has laid out a ‘core offer’ that could risk the council’s ‘ability to meet statutory guidance and deadlines’.

EXCLUSIVE: Chiefs warning to May if austerity not lifted

17/10/2018

More councils face scaling back services to a minimum statutory offer if May reneges on her promise of ‘better times ahead,’ chief executives have warned.

Whitehall must spend £19bn annually to end austerity

16/10/2018

Theresa May’s promise to bring an ‘end to austerity’ is incompatible with the chancellor’s aim of balancing the books by the mid-2020s, financial experts say.

English councils undergoing harshest spending cuts

09/10/2018

English councils have been hit twice as hard by spending cuts compared to their Scottish and Welsh counterparts, according to a study published today.

Unison calls for windfall tax on PFI corporations

19/02/2018

Trade union Unison has backed a Labour MP’s call for a windfall tax on private companies delivering public services.

The end of the local government finance conundrum?

09/01/2018

Mark Whitehead examines why Thurrock Council is focusing on 'financial autonomy' in the wake of austerity.

Council funding cuts restricting access to contraception

03/11/2017

One in three local authorities have reduced or plan to reduce the number of sites delivering contraceptive services in the last two years, FoI request reveals.

Council staff told to take mandatory unpaid leave

02/11/2017

Northamptonshire County Council has told its staff they must take a day’s mandatory unpaid leave as part of an effort to save £2m a month.

Council to axe 420 jobs to close budget gap

24/10/2017

Swindon council may have to axe over 400 jobs as it comes under pressure to close a £30m budget gap.

Don’t ‘abandon’ austerity, free market think tank says

13/07/2017

‘Abandoning austerity is no solution’, says free-market policy think tank amid calls to lift the public sector pay cap.

Council ‘divide’ across UK

18/10/2016

Local authorities across the UK are increasingly divided into the ‘haves and the have nots’, according to a new report.

Whitehall should use Brexit vote to end ‘failed austerity’, union leader urges

13/09/2016

The Government should use Brexit as an opportunity to ‘throw off the shackles of spending cuts’, UNISON general secretary says.

Give local authorities the wherewithal to drive recovery

25/07/2016

Brakes have been applied to the austerity drive. Tiffany Cloynes, head of public services at Geldards LLP, considers what this means for local government.

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Banning urban pesticide use

RSPB and PAN are working on a letter from local councillors calling on the Government to introduce a national ban on urban pesticide use. Find out more below.
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