Whitehall claims about the key Redmond Review recommendation do not cut the mustard, writes the assistant director of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance & Accountancy.
“I help to support the establishments I have mentioned they cost enough; and those who are badly off must go there” – Ebenezer Scrooge
I think it’s safe to say that the final announcements to come out of the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government for 2020 were a bit of a mixed bag. Despite the heroic efforts of the local government sector over the year to combat Covid-19, it would seem that government largely ignored our Christmas wishes and put us on the collective naughty list.
Government gives green light to Redmond Review recommendations 22 December 2020: The government has responded positively to Sir Tony Redmond’s review into the effectiveness of external audit and transparency of financial reporting in local authorities, with some of the recommended reforms starting in 2021.
On 17 December 2020, the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) published its response to Sir Tony Redmond’s independent review of local authority audit and financial reporting.
The response reconfirms the importance of external audit in providing assurance to councils and local taxpayers, particularly at a time when local authorities are exposed to greater risks – whether through stretched funding or increased commercial activity.
Government publishes response to audit review
Response to review into the effectiveness of local audit published.
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Government commits to measures that will help councils improve transparency and accountability
An additional £15 million for councils to help them deliver the recommendations
The government has published its response to the independent review into the effectiveness of local audit which was carried out by Sir Tony Redmond earlier this year.
The review, launched in July 2019, examined whether the reporting regimes are robust enough to spot early warning signs, such as risks from commercial investments, to protect public funds and better serve taxpayers.
The response sets out how we will implement many of the recommendations made by Sir Tony Redmond, including swift action to ensure the ongoing effectiveness of the local audit system and improvements to make financial information more transparent.
Government announces new funding boost for councils
Councils across England will receive £51.2 billion next year – an increase of £2.2 billion from last year.
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Local Government Secretary confirms £51.2 billion package of funding for local services
Represents £2.2 billion increase in core spending, including access to extra £1 billion for social care
Estimated £3 billion additional support for councils to deal with COVID-19 pressures
Councils across England will receive £51.2 billion next year – an increase of £2.2 billion from last year, Local Government Secretary Robert Jenrick announced today (17 December 2020).
This financial package provides councils with additional resources to deliver effective local services and continue to support their communities during the pandemic, while protecting council taxpayers from excessive increases.
The government will not immediately back a key recommendation of the Redmond review that a single body should be created to manage and regulate local authority audit, it announced this afternoon.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government said the recommendation of Sir Tony Redmond in his review of council audit clashed with its intention not to create new arms-length bodies and that it did not with to “recreate” the Audit Commission. It will examine whether an existing body working in the field can take on a system leadership role.
However extra money to support local authority audit was announced in communities secretary Robert Jenrick s government’s response to Sir Tony’s review of the effectiveness of local authority audit published in September.