Special educational needs bill in England hits record £10bn a year National Audit Office report finds no signs of improvement in lives of pupils despite record spending The Guardian - UK · Oct 23, 2024
Special educational needs system ‘not delivering’ for families – watchdog The NAO said the Government should introduce urgent reform to put SEN provision in England on a ‘financially sustainable footing’. The Independent UK · Oct 23, 2024
Sellafield cleanup cost rises to £136bn amid tensions with Treasury National Audit Office questions value for money as predicted bill for decommissioning increases by £21bn The Guardian - UK · Oct 23, 2024
Anger at UK’s ‘bonkers’ plan to reach net zero by importing fuel from North Korea Government criticised over list of potential countries for sourcing biomass, which also includes Afghanistan The Guardian - UK · Oct 9, 2024
HMRC accused of facilitating fraud by firms seeking rebates on behalf of unwitting taxpayers One woman says an invented claim for £5,000 that was sent to HMRC without her knowledge bore someone else’s signature The Guardian - UK · Sep 30, 2024
More floods are coming to Britain, but you ought to know this: the system that should protect us is a scandal A network of public bodies are supposed to safeguard us from flooding. But, like old boys’ clubs, they are bastions of self-interest, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot The Guardian - UK · Sep 18, 2024
Training Ukrainian troops ‘constrains’ British army’s own training, watchdog warns Ministry of Defence defends courses as some Ukrainians criticise training The Independent UK · Sep 10, 2024
Billions lost from small retailers in tax evasion, says watchdog National Audit Office says trail of tax debts left by small UK retailers is widespread and increasing every year The Guardian - UK · Sep 9, 2024
The Guardian view on the future of public transport: time to invest and think big Editorial: A Labour-commissioned review is right to argue that trains, buses and trams can be at the heart of a green growth strategy The Guardian - UK · Aug 25, 2024
Bridget Phillipson pledges to reverse ‘baked-in’ education inequalities ahead of A-level results day The education secretary says child poverty is a ‘big driver’ of educational disparities between the most and least advantaged students The Independent UK · Aug 12, 2024
Revealed: Rachel Reeves’s huge £47bn compensation bill for historical injustice, cover-up and negligence Exclusive: Attempts by the chancellor to get a grip on Britain’s finances have been made more difficult by an outstanding bill of £47bn for past mistakes by the British state The Independent UK · Aug 10, 2024
OPINION - Why HS2 may mean *fewer* people travel by train Imagine spending upwards of £50bn on a new high speed rail line which ends up cutting capacity and leading to slower journey times. Good news! You don't have to. It is a reasonable description of the impact of axing HS2 north of Birmingham, via a properly jaw-dropping report by the National… Evening Standard · Jul 24, 2024
King to receive extra £45m of public money as crown estate income soars Royal accounts show estate made £1.1bn profit, meaning sovereign grant will rise to £132m for 2025-26 The Guardian - UK · Jul 23, 2024
NHS finances so dire that whole service may collapse, says spending watchdog National Audit Office says NHS in England too cash-strapped to treat patients quickly enough The Guardian - UK · Jul 23, 2024
The Guardian - UK · Jul 23, 2024 Homelessness in England at highest level on record, watchdog says National Audit Office report on Tory government’s attempts to tackle problem finds situation has worsened since 2017
The Independent UK · Jul 23, 2024 Disadvantaged children further behind in school than a decade ago despite £9bn spent, watchdog finds The Department for Education (DfE) does not have a strategy to tackle the problem, a report from the National Audit Office has warned
The Independent UK · Jul 23, 2024 Buckingham Palace renovation spend tops £239m amid asbestos discovery Asbestos and historic structural damage amongst unforeseen discoveries that ‘slowed progress’
The Guardian - UK · Jul 23, 2024 West coast fares could rise to incentivise people ‘to not travel by rail’, UK watchdog says DfT told to look into lessening demand amid reduced capacity after HS2’s second leg axed
The Independent UK · Jul 23, 2024 Collective wait of 753 years for people phoning DWP in 2023/24, watchdog says Poor service can have a range of detrimental impacts, including frustration, distress and disruption for customers, the National Audit Office said.
The National (Scotland) · Jul 23, 2024 Public will be encouraged NOT to travel after HS2 axed, new report finds RISHI Sunak’s decision to curtail HS2 means the public may need to be incentivised not to travel by train, according to the UK’s public spending…
Evening Standard · Jul 23, 2024 'Years of delay' before new HS2 station at Euston gets off ground, warns public spending watchdog Report lists disastrous impact of Rishi Sunak’s decision to delay high-speed rail link
The Independent UK · Jul 23, 2024 Councils spending half their budgets on homelessness as problem hits record high, damning report finds Government has failed to tackle the issue despite higher funding, National Audit Office report says
The Independent UK · Jul 23, 2024 Sunak’s scrapping of HS2 will cost £100m and take up to three years, National Audit Office warns NAO lays bare the cost and complications of decision to scrap phase 2 of the high-speed rail plan, first revealed by The Independent
Evening Standard · Jul 22, 2024 Buckingham Palace: Two miles of 'dangerous' electrical cables ripped out to stop a devastating fire The risk of a blaze and flood were the initial focus of a ten-year refurbishment programme
The Guardian - UK · Jun 3, 2024 Reality check: is Keir Starmer’s triple lock on nuclear weapons anything new? We look at the facts and figures behind Labour’s promise and its affordability