Test and trace is a joke
As I predicted, test and trace has become a joke in many parts of the country.
As I predicted, test and trace has become a joke in many parts of the country.
As the summer comes to an end and autumn approaches, I hope you had the opportunity to enjoy some time off after what has been a very busy six months for us all.
Another week, another U-turn – this time, the botched A-level results saga. And a government that claims to be ‘levelling up’ has proved once again that this is just one more empty slogan to add to the pile.
We finally saw the Government’s planning reforms, sneaked out at midnight on a Wednesday, just before the start of the summer holidays.
August was dominated by new government proposals on planning, scene setting for a White Paper on recovery and reorganisation, and the school exams fiasco.
The LGA’s virtual annual conference, spread over two weeks in July, featured webinars with prominent speakers from local and central government, including Secretary of State Robert Jenrick MP and Local Government Minister Simon Clarke MP.
After six months at the frontline of the emergency response to COVID-19, the unique ability of councils to respond to the needs of local communities has never been more evident.
The Prime Minster has demanded that we “build, build, build” our way out of the economic crisis caused by COVID-19.
The LGA held its annual conference remotely in July, bringing sessions to our members. Our councillors did a great job, raising good questions and entering the debate.
At the beginning of the lockdown, Rishi Sunak, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, said the Government would support jobs, incomes, businesses and do whatever it took to get people and the …