Monthly Archives: August 2010

Keep the two-tier workforce Code, by John Tizard

31 August 2010 | John Tizard

There is growing speculation that the Government will scrap the Best Value Workforce Code. This places a statutory duty on local authorities to ensure that workforce issues are addressed in procurements and contracted services.  It has been applied to the wider public sector since it was originally introduced into local government. Read more...

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Committee politics, coalition style, by Dan Corry

31 August 2010 | Dan Corry

So, thanks to the early birth of the new Cameron child, Nick Clegg looks set to stay in the government hot seat for a little while longer. He will be hoping that the young guns at the Institute for Fiscal Studies, having worked through August to show that the first Coalition Budget was not in fact progressive, now take a bit of a break. Read more...

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Tax and spend: there is an alternative, by Richard Murphy

30 August 2010 | Richard Murphy

The party conferences are almost upon us. I’ve been invited to them all, and have thankfully got out of most: there is only so much lobbying a man can do before he loses the will to live. But there are common themes that will be relentless and familiar throughout this conference season. Read more...

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Road signs: better safe than scenic? By Andrew Jepp

27 August 2010 | Andrew Jepp

This week’s calls from ministers to reduce unnecessary street signs, railings and advertising hoardings, the latest in a wealth of cost-saving announcements, reveal a potentially short-sighted approach to the management of our public spaces. Read more...

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Clegg & the IFS: opportunity knocked, by Colin Talbot

26 August 2010 | Colin Talbot

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg claims in today’s Financial Times that the Coalition’s policies are ‘fair’ and we shouldn’t get hung up on ‘the numbers’. Nice try Nick, but no prize, I’m afraid. Read more...

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Free schools: not for turning, by Melissa Benn

25 August 2010 | Melissa Benn

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The no-win generation, by Conor Ryan

24 August 2010 | Conor Ryan

This week’s GCSE celebrations – as with the A-level ones last week – will be muted somewhat by the lack of opportunities facing young people after they digest their results. Undergraduate places for UK students may have been up by 10,000 this year, but they still left many youngsters with no prospect of a university place.  The youth employment market is unpromising, with many graduates struggling to find places with their degrees, and many apprenticeships and college places are hard-fought. Read more...

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VIDEO BLOG: Facing the cuts, by Chris Bilsland

20 August 2010 | Chris Bilsland

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How to spend it, by Robert Allison

19 August 2010 | Robert Allison

As part of the government’s review of spending in the public sector, it has called for greater transparency across all departments. In a quote reported by the BBC last week, the prime minister said he couldn’t promise that people won’t make bad spending decisions in future, but that he could promise that ‘you will find out about them and that will be the best way of ensuring we get better value for money.’ Read more...

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First 100 days: services take a haircut, by Marc Cetkowski

18 August 2010 | Marc Cetkowski

This is still supposed to be the honeymoon period for the coalition, but its first 100 days of government have been overshadowed by a disorganised cutting of public services. Read more...

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