Finance

Think-tank says business rates retention schemes will reduce central government’s financial flexibility and may not provide valuable insight

Perm sec Antonia Romeo argues delaying work until the department has statutory powers would put Brexit readiness at risk, in the third Whitehall direction for post-EU spending

Cabinet Office announces new measures to clamp down on late payments to SMEs in supply chain

Question mark over £5bn 2020 target as 2016-17 sales bring in just £601m

Some 2,000 staff to move to Salford in 2022, with 2,500 more to follow in 2027

Public Accounts Committee tells ministry to up its game on keeping track of schools operators at risk of going broke

Possibility of ten-year funding deal, hinted at in session with MPs, described as “the best possible Easter present for the health and social care system”

MPs point to low takeup and inadequate funding and warn ministers do not know whether the anticipated productivity boost will actually happen

David Sterling tells inquiry his workforce cannot be expected to deliver beyond their resources and skills sets as power vacuum continues

Majority of magistrate’s and county courts sold since 2010 went to property developers, followed by private owners and local authorities

Watchdog MPs doubt department’s ability to meet £1.7bn savings target from new regulations

Department forced to check 300,000 claims after tribunal ruling on flaws in employment and support allowance

Cabinet Office gives unions six weeks to table compo package to rival its own update proposals

Independent report says Northamptonshire has irreparably dysfunctional organisational structure and should be split up

Unprecedented report makes demands of six departments and calls for better oversight to ‘prevent policy from working at cross-purposes’

Possible change criticised by former Treasury perm sec Nick Macpherson as “trashing history”

Chancellor says if public finance improvement continues he could increase public spending from 2020

Think tank says chancellor will trumpet lower annual borrowing but report a much bigger deficit than predicted two years ago

Theresa May announces new analysis intended to keep the UK as a world leader in social investment

Union’s national executive calls for pan-Whitehall dialogue on ending pay cap with threat of national ballot on the strike action

Report highlights warnings of a ‘crisis-driven’ approach of local authorities increasingly focus on providing core statutory social services

Cabinet Office accounts reveal historic overpayments in amounts handed to former public sector employees

Cabinet ministers have dipped into a special pot set up by former chancellor George Osborne 

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