Getting to the heart of local government

摘要

As this is the 14 February issue of The MJ, let me just take the opportunity to wish all our readers a happy Valentine's Day. At the moment, local government is a sector where it is easy to feel somewhat unloved. Perhaps it was ever thus, but now more than ever with the battering of spending cuts and Eric Pickles' barrage of abuse. While the outright war between the secretary of state and the sector has calmed slightly since its peak a couple of weeks ago, it is an uneasy truce which may hold until after the local elections in May.