Democracy, accountability – warm words but do health reforms live up to their billing? Janet Sillet, LGiU briefings manager, questions whether local democratic accountability will be strengthened by the reforms that directly affect local government. She says it’s up to “local authorities to make their voices heard in the debate… these issues aren’t marginal and need to be taken seriously, and they could be critical in improving the wellbeing of local communities, not to mention in bridging the current democratic health gap”.
“What if all this disruption doesn’t deliver” the hoped-for savings? Patrick Butler blogs on a survey from the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy that found –
– 70% of finance officers are worried cuts would take longer to implement because of their complexity and because of public opposition.
– Over 50% were fearful that “some initiatives will cost more to implement and save less than currently planned
Government in a pickle over the Pickles code on council-run papers – Roy Greenslade, professor of journalism at City University, writes insightfully in the Guardian about the new code on council-run newspapers. He says –
“By outlawing the publication by councils of any kind of communication, except on a quarterly basis, the government is in danger of preventing councils from carrying out their responsibility to keep their residents informed of local services”.
