Economy

Foreign and Commonwealth Office to remove all avoidable single-use plastics from UK estate by end of year

Former international trade permanent secretary Martin Donnelly to give speech undermining Brexit vision of Liam Fox 

Cabinet Office minister to promise vast majority of powers returning from Brussels will start off in Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast – not Whitehall

Council to bankroll new office development in drive for share of Brexit-related quango expansion

Firm says bolstered transparency, a fair dealing ethos and more break-clauses should be introduced in wake of Carillion’s demise

Report suggests UK’s top negotiator is increasingly frustrated at being sidelined in Brexit talks

Departmental perm sec reveals Brexit funding for 2018-19 has not yet been agreed with the Treasury

Environment select committee calls on department to analyse impact of Brexit on agriculture and introduce fund for UK farmers

Department consults on revamp of its Public Attitudes Tracker to cover workers’ rights and corporate transparency

As cross-party power-sharing talks collapse, decisions made by senior officials in absence of an executive are challenged in Belfast High Court 

Transport Select Committee says failure has wider implications for rail franchising 

Move follows Public Accounts Committee observation that up-front borrowing could have reduced the cost to consumers of the £20bn Hinkley Point C project

Tailored review urges Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to give garden city development corporation more financial freedom

Appointments watchdog publishes advice letter to Ameetpal Gill over contract with Oliver Letwin’s cross-party Brexit initiative

Treasury has handed £150m to official receiver for overseeing company’s liquidation, it has been revealed 

Tax agency will move 2,700 staff to second Scottish regional centre by 2021

Proposals indicate that the firm, which went out of business last month, expected to be able to get double its profit margins on some Whitehall contracts

Nationalising the service currently operated by Virgin Trains is one of two options for services after franchise “got its sums wrong”

Programme manager bags runner up slot in literary springboard the Costa Short Story Award

Shadow body overseeing hubs programme and New Property Model expected to go live last year

Vote by parliament to release analysis comes after it was leaked to media

Lombardelli will take up post in April following departure of Sir David Ramsden

Brexit minister accused civil servants of undermining EU exit after economic analysis of EU exit leaked

PCS calls for pause in programme and more resources for HMRC as it plans for post-Brexit customs landscape