Latest news with #publicbuildings
BBC News
10 hours ago
- Business
- BBC News
Hospitals, schools and courts to get funding boost
The UK government has pledged more money for "crumbling" hospitals, schools and courts as part of a ten year infrastructure strategy. It will spend £9bn a year over the next decade to fix and replace buildings, but is yet to publish a list identifying major projects such as new roads and rail strategy is a cornerstone of the government's plans to put some life into Britain's sluggish economic growth, and promises £725bn of funding over a announcements on Thursday focussed on what the Chief Secretary to the Treasury Darren Jones called a "soaring maintenance backlog" in health, education and justice buildings. The strategy promised a more rounded plan for major schemes, but the publication of a new pipeline of hundreds of projects has been delayed until said the projects will be shown on a map of the said the government would be doing "fewer things better instead of the same things badly", a sign that the list of more than 600 projects inherited from the Conservatives may be cut was no formal green light at this stage for the long-promised northern high-speed rail link between Liverpool and for the link were first revealed in May 2024 after the cancellation of HS2's northern Treasury also indicated it was looking at new models for funding economic projects, including public private partnerships, and would report back by the autumn Rachel Reeves said: "Crumbling public buildings are a sign of the decay that has seeped into our everyday lives because of a total failure to plan and invest."But Conservative shadow minister Richard Fuller said the previous government "had to deal with a series of economic disruptions including the impact of Covid, the unwinding of quantitative easing across all advanced economies, and the invasion of Ukraine by Russia"."The global impact of these were to disrupt supply chains, increase inflation, and raise interest rates, " Fuller these shocks, the last government increased public spending on capital projects, he said. The £725bn will be spent on projects including rebuilding and maintaining schools, colleges, and hospitals, and prisons will be will be an environmental planning reform package of £500m over three years to speed up how Natural England and the Environment Agency process planning £8bn will go on flood defences over the ten years, and £1bn has been earmarked for repairing bridges, flyovers and is £39bn for affordable homes, and £15.6bn for regional Murison, chief executive of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, said the investments "will both boost productivity and support the decarbonisation of our economy".
BBC News
2 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Community hub to open in former council office in Williton
Three publicly owned buildings will be sold off following the completed refurbishment of a former council Somerset House, on Killick Way in Williton, was the joint headquarters of Somerset West and Taunton Council until the council's abolition in April taking over the building, Somerset Council had been carrying out refurbishment work to allow the village library and other services to operate out of the site, the Local Democracy Reporting Service the building due to reopen on 25 June, the council said it would sell off the former library, children's centre and Beckett House, with the proceeds being used to fund front-line services. Since Somerset Council officially took over, no in-person meetings had been held at West Somerset House – with all meetings of its planning committee west taking place in Taunton and being decision to remodel the building was taken by the council in March Federica Smith-Roberts, the lead member for communities, housing and culture said: "By bringing the library, customer access point and other services together under one roof, we're creating a hub where people can access vital services and get support."The ground floor of the revamped West Somerset House will comprise the library, registration service and children's addition to selling off the former library building and children's centre, the council also intended to dispose of Beckett House on Bridge head of property Simon Lewis said the council's ongoing financial emergency meant it was not in the public interest for these surplus assets to be council has declined to state how much it expects to raise from the sale of these three buildings, citing commercial sensitivity.
BBC News
14-05-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Rotherham considering flag restrictions on council buildings
The choice of which flags can be flown on public buildings, and which cannot, is under review, with a new motion set to go before a town Conservative councillors say flag-flying should be restricted to a "small set of official emblems" in Baum-Dixon, backed by Zachary Collingham, will put the motion to Labour-run Rotherham Council this week, arguing that the current approach to flag-flying had become "too controversial and divisive".The council has flown various flags on its buildings to mark international events in recent years, the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) said, showing solidarity with causes or recognising specific communities. The council heard that, while many of the gestures were well-intentioned, the choice to fly certain flags had often led to disagreement, and even complaints, among residents - with the fallout taking a significant amount of officer motion claims "what was once a symbolic gesture has become a source of conflict".It added that inconsistent decisions on flags had "left the council open to criticism and political pressure".If passed, the new rules would allow just four flags to be flown on Rotherham Council buildings and sites:the Union flag (Union Jack)the England flag (St George's Cross)the Yorkshire RoseRotherham's official Coat of Arms All other flags, such as those for international awareness days, special causes, and campaigns, would no longer be permitted under the new protocol, the motion councillors who put forward the motion said the proposals were "not a rejection of any cause or group", adding the move was intended to avoid controversy, bring consistency, and help the council refocus its energy and resources on delivering frontline proposed changes are to be debated at the next full council meeting on 21 May, the LDRS the motion is approved, a revised policy would be drawn up ahead of final approval by the council to highlights from South Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North
