Inflexible Local Authority Funding

There must be a process to ensure that, where there is a requirement for funding to strengthen mortuary security, it is expedited and considered at the highest levels within the local authority.

The Inquiry heard evidence that the impact of public funding cuts fell disproportionately hard on metropolitan police services, such as Greater Manchester Police, compared with non-metropolitan services. In the event that public funding cuts are in the future considered necessary by the government, the Home Office should consider whether some funding arrangement for police services different from that...

Lancashire County Council should review its processes and training to ensure decisions regarding children and families are made on the basis of assessed need rather than inflexible criteria such as duration or ease of arranging services.

Public expenditure rules should be sufficiently flexible so that false economies can be avoided. In order to deliver a policy objective, Departments should not be required to choose a more expensive option in overall terms because they cannot use the available funding in a flexible cost-effective way. The Department of Finance should engage with HMT to determine how...