News Local authority services at breaking point, despite council tax rises Local authority leaders are warning of more cuts to services even though most plan to raise council tax this year. New research conducted by the Local Government Information Unit (LGiU) and the Municipal Journal (MJ) reveals that nearly 80 per cent of councils have little or no confidence in the sustainability of local government finances and many are at breaking point. The 2017 State of Local Government Finance survey found that councils are being forced to dip into their reserves to cope with immediate pressures on social care and housing, and 40 per cent warn that there will be further cuts to other frontline services. Jonathan Carr-West, chief executive of LGiU, said: Local government finances across the country are in a dire state. Council budgets are stretched beyond measure. Everyone is expecting someone to fail. They are just hoping it wont be them. The survey received responses from 131 councils in England and Wales, and nearly all (94 per cent) said they will be forced to raise council tax for residents, as well as increase charging for services. Only four per cent of councils believe the increased social care precept offered by central government will close the social care funding gap. Heather Jameson, editor of the MJ, said: We are facing the collapse of vital services. Local authorities are trying to run 21st-century services with an outdated funding system and less and less cash something hasto give. The majority (84 per cent) of councils think the current needsassessment formula is not fit for purpose. Councils say they want to see increased powers over charging and trading, the ability to reband council tax and raise specific local taxes, and the scrapping of the requirement for a referendum for council tax increases above two per cent per year. update: local government Finance Bill The Public Bill Committee stage of the Local government Finance Bill 2016-2017 ended on 21 February, but a date for the report stage has yet to be set. The bill aims to: Provide the legislative framework for the introduction of full retention of business-rate revenue by local authorities Give effect to a number of adjustments to liability for business rates arising from recent policy reviews and decisions, and allow initiatives towards greater digitisation of rates collection Permit the imposition of infrastructure supplements by mayoral combined authorities and the Mayor of London, as agreed in a number of the devolution deals concluded in 2014-16 Introduce a new property owner levy, built upon the concept of property owner Business Improvement Districts developed in 2014, and extend the power to create business-rate supplements to mayoral combined authorities peterborough tells whirlpool to change consumer advice over tumble dryers Authority for Whirlpool said: Our decision to issue the notice follows an internal review, which led us to conclude that further action was needed to protect consumers. Whirlpool has accepted this notice and is acting upon it. The internal review included a number of independent experts, and was instigated and led by Peterborough Trading Standards. The review confirmed that the initial advice by Peterborough was appropriate and proportionate, the spokesman continued. Our decision to issue the notice was based on an escalation in the number of incidents related to the specific fault. The consumer group Which? announced a judicial review into Peterboroughs handling of the case in December and has called for a recall of the machines involved. Istock.com/pAlto Peterborough Trading Standards has issued an enforcement notice instructing Whirlpool to change its consumer advice about using faulty tumble dryers, which have been responsible for several fires. The new advice warns owners of the machines not to use them until they have been modified by an engineer. A spokesman for Peterborough Trading Standards the Primary Unlocking the potential of Primary Authority responses welcome Trading standards officers have a month to make their views known on changes to Primary Authority (PA), which will come into force in October under the Enterprise Act 2016. PA is a paid-for regulatory advisory service offered to national businesses by some local authorities. The scheme aims to give firms sound regulatory advice to ensure they operate within the law. However, the scheme has twice come under fire in recent months after advice given to a national chain and a manufacturer was questioned by another local authority, and by the consumer organisation Which?. But Regulatory Delivery part of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, which oversees PA believes changes implemented by the Enterprise Act 2016 will unlock the full potential ofthe scheme, and enable greater consistency across local and nationalregulation. One of the main changes now being consulted upon includes introducing several national regulators to act as supporting regulators to PAs. These include: the Health and Safety Executive; Food Standards Agency; Gambling Commission; Competition and Markets Authority; and Regulatory Delivery. Craig McClue, CTSI lead officer and policy executive, said the changes appear to be positive ones: A system more vertically integrated to a national level of established regulators will give better support to PA relationships. This change should see a more consistent approach, and access to a greater range of advice and information. Hopefully, this will also assist in reducing disputes over assured advice. Other changes include: Opening PA to pre-start-up businesses and companies trading in only one local authority area Making it easier for groups of businesses to access PA by placing coordinators at the heart of partnerships Updating and streamlining administrative processes Since PA began in 2009, the scheme has been extended to include more areas of regulation and to enable more businesses to participate. Consultation responses can be made online, or by completing a response form and emailing it to pa@beis.gov.uk. Alternatively, it can be sent to Regulatory Delivery, BEIS, Lower Ground Floor, Victoria Square House, Birmingham B2 4AJ. Responses should be received by 7 April. It is important to note that this is not a consultation on the policy changes laid down in the Enterprise Act 2016, but on the details needed to effect the changes. Age uk demands urgent action on social care A new report from Age UK claims we are living on borrowed time for saving the UKs social care system from collapse. With older people needing support facing huge challenges one in eight over-65s now lives with unmet care needs plus hospitals and family members struggling under the increasing burden, Age UK is demanding that government commits funds in the Spring Budget to avoid imminent danger. The charitys call chimes with the urgent concerns of cash-strapped trading standards officers, who know only too well that their early interventions can often give elderly people the confidence to live independently for longer. hmrc and nts to share information on estate agencies New procedures to streamline cooperation between HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) and the National Trading Standards (NTS) Estate Agency Team by using existing legal gateways have been agreed. The move is designed to ease the flow of information on estate agency businesses between the parties. Most estate agencies operate within the legislation that obliges them to be registered under money-laundering regulations and sign up to property redress schemes, to protect the financial system and consumers. The new agreement, effective from January 2017, will enable better information exchange, making it more difficult for noncompliant estate agents to operate outside the Money Laundering Regulations 2007 and Estate Agency Act 1979. Both HMRC and the NTS will be able to target: areas of risk; those who are trading without registering appropriately; and those who may not be meeting their obligations.