Finance Category

Council theft may be inside job yet no suspects found

INVESTIGATIONS into the mysterious theft of nearly £1,500 from Harrow Civic Centre – which auditors said had an ‘indication of staff involvement’ – have failed to uncover a suspect. Harrow Council had fought to keep the report into the incident confidential, but the Information Commissioner’s Office backed the Observer’s Freedom of Information request and ordered [...]

The Great Inertia Sector: A whistleblower’s account of council work where staff pull six-month sickies

In his emergency Budget this week, Chancellor George Osborne announced he was cutting public sector expenditure by 25 per cent. Unions have declared the cuts irresponsible. But are they? Here, one employee for a large inner London authority lifts the lid on the culture of inertia and incompetence at his workplace. The Mail knows the [...]

No more ‘propaganda on the rates’ says Pickles

Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles has launched a review into council-funded free newspapers, telling Channel 4 News’s Stephanie West they are “propaganda on the rates dressed up as local reporting” that could damage the local newspaper industry. Local newspapers are already under the cosh of recession and of keeping up with technological advances, with 100 [...]

Cut these greedy pen pushers and free the nation

THE recently departed Labour Government left an appalling legacy. Endemic waste and mismanagement have almost bankrupted the public finances. As the former Chief Secretary Liam Byrne breezily confess ed on his departure from the Treasury last month after his party’s long reign of profligacy: “There’s no money left.” A key part of this spendthrift culture [...]

Compensation claims against Lambeth Council increase by 500 per cent

Compensation paid out by Lambeth Council for its mistakes increased by 500 per cent last year, it has emerged. The town hall paid out £118,812 in compensation in 2009-10 compared to £19,706 in 2008-09, according to a council report. The increase comes as it emerged the council received about twice as many complaints about its [...]

Colchester Council is told: Hand over Vaf info – or else

COLCHESTER Council has been ordered – on pain of prosecution – to release secret papers about the building of the town’s controversial new arts facility. The Government’s official information watchdog has severely criticised the council for trying to keep private information about the unfinished and hugely over-budget Visual Arts Facility. An investigation by the Information [...]

Three jailed over £1.3m adult learning contracts scam

Three people have been jailed over an adult learning skills contracts scam in Shropshire. Paul Kent, 46, of Telford, admitted receiving about £300,000 in kickbacks from Learning Skills Council contracts worth £1.3m, which he granted to his co-defendants. He was jailed for four and a half years at Birmingham Crown Court. Silinder Singh Sidhu, of [...]

Council Pays £60k Following Complaints

COMPLAINTS against Cardiff council to a local government watchdog have resulted in payouts totalling more than £60,000, the Echo can reveal. The data, released under the Freedom of Information Act, showed the Public Services Ombudsman has investigated 422 complaints into the council over the past five years. In 75 of these investigations the council was [...]

Huddersfield Solicitor Helps Grandmother Wins 5 Year Battle With Kent County Council

A GRANDMOTHER who battled for five years with Kent County Council to be paid the same rate as a foster carer for looking after her granddaughter, has won her case in the High Court in London. The grandmother who cannot be named for legal reasons, fought for the right to be paid fairly for looking [...]

Bungling Council Orders 20 Dead People To Court For Not Paying Council Tax

A local council has been forced to apologise after sending council tax bills and court orders to 20 people who have passed away. The families of the deceased were distraught to receive court summonses addressed to their loved ones – some of whom died 10 years ago. Croydon Council in South London admitted the mistake, [...]