Care grants 'not delivering value'

A grant system to provide vulnerable people with essential items such as beds and cookers is not delivering value for money, Whitehall's spending watchdog has said.Read

Budget tax changes to hit families

Half a million working families will lose more than £1,000 under technical changes to tax credit allowances in last month's emergency Budget, according to new research.Read

MoD 'must stop living beyond means'

The Ministry of Defence must learn to stop "living beyond its means" and start budgeting more realistically, the Whitehall spending watchdog has said.Read

Iraq invasion 'triggered UK terror'

The invasion of Iraq triggered a massive upsurge in terrorist activity against the UK, the former head of MI5 said.Read

New office to simplify tax system

Chancellor George Osborne has announced plans to simplify Britain's "spaghetti bowl" tax system.Read

UK's finances hit by borrowing high

Government borrowing hit a higher-than-expected £14.5 billion last month, official figures have revealed.Read

New office to make tax more simple

Chancellor George Osborne is set to signal his intention to trim back Britain's complicated tax system by creating a new Office for Tax Simplification.Read

Only one in 10 police 'visible'

Just one in every 10 police officers is visibly available to the public despite year-on-year budget increases over the past four decades, a police watchdog has warned.Read

Whitehall 'unlikely to meet target'

Whitehall departments are unlikely to be able to deliver £35 billion of value-for-money savings promised by the end of this financial year, a report by the National Audit Office (NAO) has found.Read

PM defends Big Society initiative

David Cameron has launched the next phase of his Big Society agenda, denying the idea is a fig leaf for swingeing cuts in public services.Read

Fox warning over Trident cut threat

Any threat to the future of Britain's nuclear deterrent from spending cuts would mean "playing fast and loose" with national security, Defence Secretary Liam Fox has warned.Read

UK to announce surge in Afghan aid

Britain is to boost spending on aid projects in Afghanistan by 40% in a bid to speed up the withdrawal of troops from the country.Read

Charities fear government cutbacks

Charities must not be a "soft target" for spending cuts, campaigners warned as the Treasury began examining detailed proposals for slashing up to 40% from some Whitehall budgets.Read

Clegg dismisses recession claims

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has dismissed claims that last month's emergency Budget will pitch Britain into a "double-dip" recession.Read

Free bus passes for over-65s only

Elderly people will have to wait longer to get free bus travel after it was revealed that Transport Secretary Philip Hammond has decided to press ahead with a planned increase in the entitlement age from 60 to 65.Read

Coalition wins vote on VAT increase

A bid to scrap the 2.5% hike in VAT has been overwhelmingly defeated in a major victory for the coalition Government.Read

Armed Forces 'must remain robust'

Britain must retain its "war-fighting edge" even at a time of cuts in state spending, Defence Secretary Liam Fox is expected to say.Read

GPs given more say in NHS shake-up

Patients and doctors have been promised a bigger role in health services as the Government unveiled plans for the biggest NHS shake-up in decades.Read

Warning over NHS restructuring plan

Evidence suggesting GPs will be more effective than health trusts at commissioning NHS services "is weak", a report has said.Read

Spending watchdog 'under pressure'

The Government's tax and spending watchdog has come under renewed pressure over reports that it slashed its forecast for public sector job losses ahead of Chancellor George Osborne's emergency Budget.Read