Local Authority round-up 16/04/21

Commercial

Councils urged to bid for £15 million traffic signals funding

The Department for Transport is urging English councils outside London to submit expressions of interest for a share of £15 million of new funding to repair and upgrade their traffic signals. Funding in blocks of between £300,000 and £500,000 will be paid out to between 30 and 50 councils and the money will be allocated to councils that can show evidence of an understanding of needs and priorities, planning for the future, wider targets and a preparedness for future technology opportunities. The application process will run from 12 April to 7 May.

For more information please click here.

Think tank calls for reform of council tax in Scotland

A briefing from IPPR Scotland has said that council tax in Scotland should be increased to the same levels as the rest of the UK and argues that closing the tax gap in council tax revenues between Scotland and the rest of the UK would generate up to £900 million a year in extra revenue. The briefing outlines five proposals for reforming council tax including implementing higher increases on bills for properties in higher bands throughout the next parliament and for the government to work with councils to test and introduce new local taxes in the next parliament. It also calls on the Scottish Government to extend the council tax reduction scheme and to introduce primary legislation to reform or replace the council tax within the first year of the new parliament.

For more information please click here.

Regulatory

Government launches four roadmap reviews including consultation on workplace social distancing measures

The government has updated its Roadmap Reviews policy paper to provide clarity on how the COVID-19 pandemic will be managed after the final step of the government’s roadmap out of lockdown is reached on 21 June 2021. The four roadmap reviews are a COVID-Status Certification Review which will consider the possibility of COVID-status certification as a way of reopening the economy and reducing social distancing restrictions. The Global Travel Taskforce will explore how and when the re-opening of non-essential international travel will take place. The Events Research Programme will work with national and local public health authorities to develop approaches to social distancing, ventilation, test-on-entry protocols and COVID-status certification in different venues. Finally, the Social Distancing Review will establish how social distancing measures can be reduced in different settings, including the workplace. The government’s ability to relax social distancing measures will be tied to decisions made by the COVID-Status Certification Review, particularly whether COVID-status certification could enable changes to social distancing.

For more information please click here.

Public fundraising permitted to resume

Civil Society Minister Baroness Barran has announced that public fundraising is now permitted to return with effect from Monday 12 April. This means that door-to-door, street and private site fundraising, in line with Government guidance, can resume. Peter Lewis, Chief Executive of the Chartered Institute of Fundraising, said “We are delighted that from 12th April charities in England will once again be able to have conversations on the doorstep or the street about your favourite cause. As further stages of lockdown ease we look forward to charities being able to plan further fundraising events, bringing people together safely and offering opportunities to once again join coffee mornings and fetes, as well as concerts and larger participation events, which all contribute to making the world a better place.”

For more information please click here.

Planning and housing

Housing Ombudsman launches damp and mould investigation

The Housing Ombudsman has launched an investigation after a review of data revealed a high rate of maladministration on cases involving damp and mould. The ombudsman is calling for evidence from landlords and their residents to support a thematic investigation which will look at damp and mould. It is aiming to make recommendations to landlords and share best practice in order to help landlords to develop their policies and procedures with a view to improving the experience of all residents. A review of its case data found 55% of cases featured damp and mould over the past two years, out of 112 cases, with £68,000 of compensation, alongside other remedies, being ordered in the same period. The call for evidence will close on 4 June 2021 after which the ombudsman will relay their initial findings to its Resident Panel for their views and will conduct a round table discussion with a selection of landlords with a view to publishing a report in the autumn.

For more information please click here.

If you have any questions about the issues raised in this update, please do not hesitate to get in touch.