Councils warn government of policy overkill
The Local Government Association claims that as much as £1.5bn per year could be saved by cutting back on unnecessary "bossy" guidance, issued to local authorities by central government departments. The comments by the association, which come in response to a consultation from the Department for Communities and Local Government on statutory duties, further state that it is right that statutory duties apply to protect vulnerable people, but that some guidance is expensive and slows down decision-making. The association has identified around 50 duties which it deems unnecessary and has asked for them to be removed immediately.
Plans for Fulham Town Hall to become a boutique hotel
Hammersmith and Fulham council have put Fulham town hall up for sale to help pay off the authority's £133m debt. The council, which has two town halls, has received various offers for the building which dates from 1888, including one proposal to convert it to a hotel. As well as the town hall, the council is selling off another seven buildings and is expecting to raise around £14m. Nick Botterill, the deputy leader of the council, said: "We do not need, and cannot afford, two town halls. We are particularly excited that there is scope to retain the chamber and halls for public use and believe that this really is the best possible solution for residents."
Southampton City Council staff vote to strike over pay cuts
Staff at Southampton city council have voted to go on strike over plans to cut pay by 5.5%. The cuts, which are designed to save jobs, were rejected by workers after council bosses admitted there may still be more redundancies despite 285 job losses so far. Earlier this year councillors finalised £25m budget cuts and announced that all workers earning more than £17,500 would be hit by the pay cut, amounting to 65% of the 6,600 staff the council employs.
