Waste collection and library services are at risk of severe cutbacks
Ahead of the Budget next week, local authorities have warned Chancellor Jeremy Hunt of extreme cost pressures.
ByLocal government
Local government in the United Kingdom manages services for people and businesses in local areas. Some of these services are schools, housing, social care, business support and registrar services. Local councils are a common type of local authority. Local public elected councillors sit on these councils and are responsible for working with local people and businesses to provide these services. Find all our latest news, comment and analysis on local government here.
We need a ten-year plan for local government
After years of underfunding, councils need a coherent strategy for recovery, reset and renewal.
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Local authorities warn they have “little choice” but to raise council tax
A majority of councils across England have revealed they plan to raise bills by almost 5 per cent this year.
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Rochdale’s by-election brings the Gaza war to Britain
A neglected former mill town is a microcosm of a fractured nation.
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How council funding impacts public health
While focus often falls on the NHS, cuts to local authority budgets have had serious consequences for the UK's healthcare…
By Five solutions to the council finance crisis
Other than a cash injection, how can local leaders save authorities from a wave of bankruptcies?
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English councils are facing an “out-of-control” financial crisis
A new report calls on the government to close the £4bn funding gap, or face a fresh wave of bankruptcies.
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The Research Brief: Why centralised funding is a waste of public money
Your weekly dose of policy thinking.
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Financial pressures are taking a toll on council staff
New polling reveals poor training, accountability and overwork in local authorities.
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Council bankruptcy tracker: authorities under increasing financial strain
Six local authorities have declared bankruptcy since 2021. Spotlight looks at the financial situation at English councils.
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How the local government finance settlement would leave poorer authorities worse off
Conservative MPs are demanding emergency funding in response to devolved finance proposals that penalise poorer councils.
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Neoliberal growth or community wealth: which path will Labour choose?
How the tensions between different models of local development are resolved will define the UK’s economic future.
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What does it mean when a council declares bankruptcy?
Local governments across England are worried about their finances, and we should be too.
By Selling off assets won’t stop council bankruptcies
The government hopes someone else will deal with the problem of inadequate local authority funding.
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Exclusive: More than a third of councillors say recreational, leisure and cultural services have been cut since 2010
Amid bankruptcies and lack of funding, Spotlight polling reveals that libraries, leisure centres and parks are all being sidelined.
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“Red Wall” areas are at the epicentre of “broken Britain”
Research reveals that the constituencies which helped the Tories win their landslide victory are suffering the most.
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Councils are on the brink – but there’s no mea culpa from Michael Gove
With one in five local authorities saying they are likely to go bankrupt, the Levelling Up Secretary is shifting the…
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A bluffer’s guide to rural politics
Initially a reluctant candidate for a Herefordshire Council seat, I discovered the camaraderie, conflict and thrill of local elections.
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Where have all the rebel councils gone?
Nottingham is the latest authority to issue a bankruptcy notice, signalling a broad crisis for local government. Why aren't councils…
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Exclusive poll: Tory councillors deliver dire verdict on the Sunak government
Less than a third say Westminster policies have been good for their local areas, a New Statesman Spotlight survey finds.
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