Cities’ plans for more efficient public spending could be thwarted by cuts (Guardian) Big cities want to join up their programmes to save billions of pounds. But the impact of cuts could cancel out any gains. Sir Albert Bore quoted.
Church clash with government looms (Financial Times) A clash is looming between the Church of England and the government after the bishop of Liverpool denounced cuts to council funding as unfair because they ignored the deep deprivation in many English cities. Sir Albert Bore quoted.
£15m project boost for young jobless (Birmingham Mail, BBC, Birmingham Post) A £15 million crusade has been launched to get 1,000 of Birmingham’s young job hunters off the dole queue. The cash will subsidise training and apprenticeship costs in a bid to encourage firms to hire some of the city’s 15,000 under-25s who are unemployed – 3,000 of those being out of work for more than a year. The initiative, launched yesterday, was the key proposal arising from the Birmingham Commission on Youth Unemployment, set up by Labour city council leader Sir Albert Bore last year.
Mayor’s dinner bill is slashed (Birmingham Mail) The cost of a slap-up dinner to welcome Birmingham’s new Lord Mayor will be slashed by £15 per head, following revelations it cost a staggering £27,000 last year.
Wheel listen to bin views, says council (Birmingham Mail) Council surveyors will visit every home in Birmingham before finally rolling out wheelie bins across the city, it has emerged.
Protests to council over budget cuts (Birmingham Mail) Campaigners battling against council cuts are to demonstrate at two key budget meetings next month.
About 40 schools are shut or partially closed in the West Midlands after more snow fell overnight.
Three men accused of planning suicide bombings told “outrageous and outlandish lies” to escape justice, a jury hears.
David Cameron says the British people must “have their say” on Europe as he pledges an in/out referendum if the Conservatives win the election.
Changes to A-levels in England will reduce the number of exams taken by sixth formers and make the qualification more rigorous, the education secretary announces.