The issuance by Croydon Council's Section 151 officer of the section 114 notice last week has not only generated huge publicity into the parlous state of that Council's financial position but has also brought attention to the precarious financial position of many other local authorities.
Indeed, the Chief Executive of CIPFA suggested to Parliament’s Commons Housing, Communities and Local Government Select Committee that we were at a "tipping point" where a number of councils might not being able to balance their books next year.
In this edition we consider the details of the Public Interest Report issued by Croydon Council's Auditors which was a precursor to the section 114 notice and also consider the Public Interest Report issued in respect of Nottingham City Council's involvement in its wholly owned company Robin Hood Energy. There are many lessons to be learned and messages worth regular reinforcement in these reports. In this edition we also consider the huge changes being introduced under the leaseholder service charge regime in the draft Building Safety Bill and explore the legal issues arising from a council's recent Interest Rate Swap transaction – Back to the Future anyone!
With that in mind we also include a link to our forthcoming local government mini-conference. In one of the sessions we will be looking at the attributes of the many and varied funding products available to local authorities as price competitive alternatives to PWLB. Please register to join us on the 8th and 10th December.
- Trowers Talks podcast: recovery and resilience in local government with Gareth Bradford, Director of Housing, West Midlands Combined Authority.
- Croydon Council goes into the red - how governance is at the heart of good financial management and budget setting
- What next for leisure services?
- Institutional blindness – there is a cure
- Interest rate swaps – why now?
- A new era of service charge legislation
- Restriction of public sector exit payment regulations 2020 now in force
Future updates
To keep up to date with local government news please visit: www.trowers.com/localgovernment
