Call for government to act amid anger over demolition of Crooked House pub in Staffordshire
The UK risks losing a vital part of its heritage unless planning laws are changed to protect historic pub buildings, campaigners have said.
Greg Mulholland, the director of Campaign for Pubs, said the growing anger over the fire and demolition of the Crooked House pub in Staffordshire must act as a “catalyst for change” in the approach to protecting historic pubs.
Continue reading...Exclusive: moves against what PM terms ‘anti-motorist’ policies follow order of review into low-traffic neighbourhoods
Ministers are considering restrictions on councils’ ability to impose 20mph speed limits as part of a new shift against green policies and traffic schemes, a stance condemned by safety and travel groups as shortsighted and divisive.
The Guardian has been told the push against what Rishi Sunak has termed “anti-motorist” policies could be extended to find ways to stop local authorities taking other measures, such as installing bus gates, that have been used routinely for decades.
Continue reading...More than a quarter of routes in English county and rural areas have been lost over 10 years
Endangered rural bus services have dwindled to a new low after losing out on funding after the pandemic, analysis for councils has shown.
More than a quarter of routes in county and rural areas of England have been lost in the past decade, with passenger numbers falling sharply.
Continue reading...LGA says single-use e-cigarettes are a litter blight and cause problems in bin lorries and recycling centres
Councils are joining paediatricians in calling for a ban on disposable vapes owing to the environmental damage they cause and the soaring number of young people taking up the addictive products.
The Local Government Association (LGA), which represents councils in England and Wales, said urgent action was needed to save taxpayers’ money – as single-use e-cigarettes are costly to recycle without going through special treatment – protect the planet and keep children safe.
Continue reading...Voicing support for traffic schemes has no statistically significant effect on re-election chances, study finds
Councillors who publicly declare support for low-traffic neighbourhoods do not suffer at the polls as a result, research suggests, indicating that the schemes might not be as politically divisive as is often believed.
The study also indicates that local politicians who openly express displeasure about LTNs do not suffer consequences in elections, although Labour councillors may benefit from a slightly positive effect.
Continue reading...One in five firms see risk of financial failure in next six months due to sums owed by NHS and councils
Dozens of home care companies in England fear collapse because invoices are going unpaid by councils and the NHS.
Hundreds of millions of pounds in unpaid bills are threatening parts of a care industry already stretched by a recruitment crisis and rising wages, according to research by the Institute of Health and Social Care Management (IHSCM).
Continue reading...Government wins Commons vote despite more than 80 Tory backbenchers joining Labour in abstained on the vote
MPs have voted to ban public bodies from boycotting Israel and other countries, despite scores of Conservative MPs not backing the bill, some of whom said the ban was illiberal and others that it would hamper action against China.
The government won a vote on Monday night on the economic activity of public bodies bill, despite the opposition of Tory backbenchers, after Labour abstained on the vote.
Continue reading...Rebel group of 50 have voiced objections to the bill designed to stop public bodies boycotting Israel
As many as 50 Conservative MPs are threatening to rebel against a government measure due to be debated on Monday that would impose fines on public bodies, including local councils, that seek to mount boycotts against Israel.
The proposal – piloted by the communities secretary, Michael Gove – is a Conservative manifesto commitment, and has caused divisions in both main parties, highlighting the controversy surrounding the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement.
Continue reading...LGA says services being put at risk by huge cost and calls way Whitehall funds scheme not fit for purpose
Councils in England are being hit by a “completely unsustainable” annual bill of more than £450m to prop up the free bus pass scheme, according to an analysis.
The Local Government Association (LGA), which calculated the figure, said the enormous cost was putting services at risk.
Continue reading...Daisy Goodwin expresses disappointment with government response to formal complaint against Tory ex-mayoral hopeful
The Cabinet Office will not investigate allegations that the former Conservative mayoral hopeful Daniel Korski groped a woman when he worked in Downing Street 10 years ago.
Daisy Goodwin, the novelist and TV producer who made the claim, said she was disappointed, and questioned why there was no dedicated body that investigated serious allegations against MPs and advisers.
Continue reading...Referral unit providers warn of overwhelming demand from unprecedented poor behaviour after pandemic lull
Referral units for children who have been excluded from mainstream schools are warning that they are full to bursting because of unprecedented levels of disruptive behaviour across the country.
Providers that take children excluded from mainstream schools say that after a lull during the pandemic, the situation has deteriorated, and they have seen permanent exclusions rising across the country in the past year. The situation had appeared to be improving with the latest government data on permanent exclusions in England showing that they fell in the spring term last year to 2,200 from 2,800 in 2019.
Continue reading...Michael Gove quoted as saying council-level sanctions undermine UK foreign policy and lead to antisemitic abuse
A government bill aimed at banning councils from imposing boycotts on Israeli goods is expected to be presented next week.
The proposed legislation will prevent public bodies from adopting their own approach to international relations, including through sanctions and divestment campaigns.
Continue reading...Anglesey deputy leader apologises for comment condemned as ‘appalling’ by area’s Conservative MP
The deputy leader of a Welsh council has stepped down after saying during a meeting that “all Tories should be shot”.
Ieuan Williams, an independent councillor in Anglesey, north Wales, has apologised since making the comment on Monday morning and referred himself to the council’s standards committee.
Continue reading...Nicole Bent and her daughter are among dozens of homeless families being put up by council in hotel rooms
A hotel getaway should be a time to escape the stresses of everyday life – but for Nicole Bent, life in a hotel has become her everyday. “It’s been demoralising, to be honest. That’s the word I would use to describe this whole experience,” she said of her ongoing three-month stay in a north London Travelodge.
Bent, 28, and her three-year-old daughter have been living in the hotel since the beginning of March, when she was made homeless after her tenancy came to an end and the landlord wanted to sell the property. She is one of dozens of homeless families being housed there by Enfield council while it tries to find her a permanent home.
Continue reading...Residents will no doubt have to pay a price for their authority’s risk taking and subsequent bankruptcy
Winning in the rollercoaster business of commercial property development is hard. Look at the share prices of the two FTSE 100 titans, regarded as the most diversified and solid operators in the sector. Since the financial crisis of 2008-09, which caused commercial property prices to crater, Landsec’s shares have been as low as 350p and as high as £13 and are currently 626p. British Land’s trajectory is similar.
Their investors collect dividends (most of the time), largely funded from rental income, but they also know that the value of the assets can be volatile. Less diversified firms have done much worse. Intu, a former shopping centre giant, collapsed in 2020 and an air of financial crisis has hovered over Hammerson for years. This is territory for conservative financing and strong risk-management safeguards.
Continue reading...Move comes after inquiry found children had faced ‘limitless’ cruelty with complicity of institutions
The government is to launch a compensation scheme for survivors of child sexual abuse in England, the home secretary has said.
The scheme is in response to the findings of a seven-year inquiry that revealed failings by schools, local authorities and other institutions to protect and safeguard the children in their care.
Continue reading...Concerns attempts to block local deals with Lib Dems or Greens risk allowing Tories to regain control of councils
Labour faces accusations of overcentralised meddling after the party’s national executive vetoed planned coalitions with the Liberal Democrats or Greens in a series of formerly Conservative-held local authorities.
While it is longstanding Labour policy that local parties need a green light from the national executive committee (NEC) before forming coalitions, some activists say attempts to block deals risk allowing Conservatives to regain control instead.
Continue reading...Announcement to take decision away from councillors comes after local party called ‘dysfunctional’
The national Labour party has announced it will appoint the next leader of the city council in Birmingham, taking the decision away from councillors, after a damning internal report said the local party was “dysfunctional” and dominated by “personality-driven factionalism”.
The move would in effect oust the current leader, Ian Ward, who was re-elected as leader of the UK’s largest local authority after a contest in May last year, and his deputy, Brigid Jones.
Continue reading...Fiona Fey, of popular choir Mediaeval Baebes, says her livelihood was threatened by noise abatement order
Musicians are facing a postcode lottery of noise complaints, industry leaders have warned, after a member of the classical chart-topping choir Mediaeval Baebes was handed a noise abatement notice for playing music in her flat.
Fiona Fey was told she had created “excessive noise from the playing of musical instruments that is audible and detectable from your property” and that she must cease making any more “noise from the property in the form of playing loud music”.
Continue reading...Focus group of blue wall residents believes Sunak is ‘out of his depth’ and that Britain needs change now
Blue wall Conservative voters in Surrey are far from impressed with the government’s obsession with culture wars, and remain unrepentant for tactically backing the Liberal Democrats at last week’s local elections.
The prime minister still looks “out of his depth”, uninspiring and unable to set out a straightforward vision six months in the job, according to a panel of Surrey residents who backed the Conservatives at the 2019 election. They believe “the country needs change now”, and the Tories need some time in opposition to sort themselves out.
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