Latest news with #TonyMcArdle
BBC News
15 hours ago
- Business
- BBC News
Nottingham council commissioner 'hopeful' of leaving on schedule
A government-appointed official tasked with overseeing improvements at Nottingham City Council has said he is "hopeful" his team can leave the authority early next Labour-run council effectively declared itself bankrupt in 2023, prompting the previous government to send in commissioners to help run it in February last were initially appointed for two years, and lead commissioner Tony McArdle has now told the BBC "the direction of travel has been good.""We're not seeking to extend our time here. This is a constitutionally quite uncomfortable thing to be doing, it's a job that shouldn't exist," he said. "The sooner we're in a position to say this aberration can be brought to an end because this authority is back in the sooner we can get to that point, the better for everyone." Asked how confident he is that his team will leave on schedule, he said there is still work to be done but "it's a much shorter list than when we first came here"."I am hopeful at least that come the end of the year we're going to be writing to the secretary of state what we want to write, what the council wants us to write, and frankly what the citizens of this city should want, which is a fully autonomous local authority without undue government influence."He added he has so far not needed to use the formal powers he has to overrule acknowledged, however, that the commissioners' presence has created tension."We knew that the government putting us in here was not going to go down very well, nor did it, but we've worked through that," he commissioners' latest report to central government, written in March, said the council continues to "operate beyond its means" but reforms are "bearing fruit".Mr McArdle said the authority was becoming less dependent on Exceptional Financial Support (EFS) - a process where a council uses the sale of assets to fund day-to-day order to set a balanced budget in the 2024-25 financial year, the council used £41m worth of comparison, it is expected to use up to £25m in 2025-26, followed by up to £10m in leader Neghat Khan, who took over in May last year, said she was "confident as I can be" that EFS will not be needed after that point, and she hopes to reduce the figure for next year. "When I came in a year ago, my job was to stabilise the council, and I think we are stable. Now the job in the second year is about sustainability," she added she was also optimistic the commissioners will leave on schedule."My job as leader is actually to get rid of the commissioners, and hopefully we can achieve that," she said. "At the moment, everything is going to plan."The commissioners are due to provide their next update to government later this year, with the intervention currently due to end in February ultimate decision over whether or not they remain in place for longer will be made by the Secretary of State for Local Government Angela Rayner.
BBC News
08-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Nottingham City Council financial reforms 'bearing fruit'
Nottingham City Council continues to "operate beyond its means" but reforms carried out by the authority are "bearing fruit", a new report were appointed to help run the council in February 2024 after it effectively declared itself bankrupt in November commissioners' second report on the Labour-led authority's progress, written in March, was published on Thursday alongside a ministerial has been "much positive progress" over the last year in developing plans for savings but "challenges" remain, according to the report. The city council said it welcomed the report and added the progress made over the past year marked an "important step forward" for the to the report, if plans are implemented, it is forecasted the council will require £10m in extraordinary financial support (EFS) for the 2026-27 financial year. In comparison, the council received £41m in support throughout the 2024-25 period. 'Clear direction' The report added: "The council continues to operate beyond its means and is dependent upon EFS."It has, however, adopted clear direction in instituting a wide range of reforms, some of which are bearing fruit but all of which will need to become embedded in order to deliver full benefit."Commissioners, led by Tony McArdle OBE, described their relationship with the council as "constructive" and said on "no occasion" had they "formally" used their powers.A statement issued by Jim McMahon, the minister of state for local government and English devolution said it was "vital" the council continued to work with the commissioners to move towards a "more sustainable" financial March, the city council agreed their budget for the 2025-26 financial year which included a council tax rise of 4.99% as well as the requirement to deliver £18m in commissioners' first report, published in December 2024, said the council's budget for the 2025-26 financial year would be "the most difficult that it has ever had to set".Among the savings for 2025/26 are reviews of several adult social care services, such as direct payments, "high-cost" care packages, and eligibility for largest savings, however, are being made through changes to some back-office functions, which the council said involved "new ways of working and operational efficiencies".The commissioners will write their next update in the autumn with the intervention due to end in February 2026.
