Comment Councils have kept people safe. Where is the promised support from government? At the start of the pandemic, the government called for councils to do “whatever it takes” and promised… Richard Watts 5th February, 2021, 8:15 am
Comment Whitehall won’t be ready. But councils can’t wait to deliver Labour’s radical manifesto Nowhere is Labour’s pledge to end austerity and pursue radical and transformative policies welcomed more enthusiastically than in… Richard Watts 7th August, 2018, 9:31 am
Comment Cable’s Royal Mail sale was crony capitalism at its worst – now we need a windfall tax to get our money back We all know the gut-wrenching feeling when you get ripped-off. Whether it’s getting a new coat and then… Richard Watts 18th September, 2017, 1:00 pm
Comment This ideological plan for more academies is as bad as Lansley’s NHS reforms It is astonishing that, at a time of major cuts to school budgets, the Government would think it… Richard Watts 16th March, 2016, 5:00 pm
Comment Has a Labour council banned pork in schools? Er, no You may have seen the utterly nonsense story doing the rounds today that Islington Council has banned pork… Richard Watts 12th February, 2015, 6:32 pm
Comment Whitehall needs to butt out if we’re going to really change Britain for the better I wrote recently about how councils have largely coped well with massive cuts from the Tory-led Government, but… Richard Watts 21st January, 2015, 3:10 pm
Comment Councils are on a cliff edge: we can’t carry on like this Over the next few weeks, local authorities across the country will be announcing their budgets for the coming… Richard Watts 8th January, 2015, 2:08 pm
Comment The policies are great, but what about the money? After four years of massive cuts, 2015 is the year when council finances will start to fall off… Richard Watts 26th July, 2014, 10:30 am
Comment Tackling rip-off cash machines As if being in poverty wasn’t bad enough, being charged for being in poverty adds insult to injury. … Richard Watts 5th April, 2014, 8:30 am
Comment Five to seven is not enough. We need free school meals for pupils of all ages Credit where it’s due; this afternoon’s announcement that the Government is rolling out Free School Meals to all… Richard Watts 17th September, 2013, 5:30 pm