Allow 15 minutes grace on double yellows
People wanting to pop into their local high street shop are discouraged from doing so by the possibility of a hefty fine
Landfill will be banned on green belt land
The green belt will no longer be blighted by landfill sites, waste incinerators or slurry pits, says Eric Pickles
Pickles' distaste for phlegm
Eric Pickles has backed plans for new local laws to help councils prosecute people who spit in the street
All-out elections imposed
Doncaster Council will be forced to hold all-out elections every four years as part of a package of measures to improve governance and electoral engagement
Support for parish councils
Local authorities should do more to help sustain a resurgence in parish councils, Eric Pickles has told sector leaders
Data: it must actually mean something
The public sector, from Whitehall to local government, is pretty poor at making good use of the masses of data it holds – and things have got to change, delegates at Public Service Events' Making Data Work conference were told. Matthew D'Arcy reports
50 ways to ease your budgets...
Councils have been accused of cutting frontline services instead of making savings elsewhere. The Communities and Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles has suggested 50 ways to make ''sensible savings in local government''. Here they are...
So should we get rid of the chief exec?
Nothing personal but let's get rid of the local authority chief executive. That appears to be what the Communities and Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles is advocating. But is he right? Blair McPherson suggests not