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Because I’m such great fun, I often share announcements from various Government bodies on Bluesky and Threads, provided they sound vaguely intriguing.
One thing is always certain: the comments will be full of surprise from people who haven’t seen the news anywhere else.
It’s debatable whether this is down to the state of Britain’s media, the Government’s poor communications game, or both – so we’ll come back to that.
But in the spirit of goodwill, we’ve dug through various projects, policies, and plans from different government departments—largely over the past few weeks—that we think most people probably haven’t heard about.
This list is by no means conclusive, and it is up to you whether you think the news items are good or bad. However, they do offer a flavour of some of the things we could, and arguably should, all be talking about.
Anti-Corruption Unit
Last Thursday, the Government announced that the Home Office and City of London Police have established a new pilot ‘Domestic Corruption Unit’.
It has been warmly welcomed by transparency groups, as an “incredibly important and welcome tipping point”, according to the charity Spotlight on Corruption.
Security Minister Dan Jarvis made the announcement at the Economic Crime Congress in central London. Responding, Duncan Hames, Director of Policy and Programmes at Transparency International UK, said: “We know corruption is not just a phenomenon elsewhere, it is happening right here at home, but not enough is understood about the nature and scale of the problem.
“The Government is right to identify the challenges to investigating and prosecuting bribery and corruption taking place here in the UK, and the need for a dedicated response. We look forward to contributing to building a clearer intelligence picture of bribery and other forms of corruption in our country, and seeing police act on it.”
Boosting Criminal Legal Aid Funding
The Ministry of Justice announced plans on Thursday night to increase criminal legal aid funding by 12% over this Parliament.
Politico reports that a consultation on the new rates will start in the new year. The Law Society has called it a “welcome step forward…but only a step”.
This Tuesday, the Government announced an extra 2,000 Crown Court sitting days over the next year. Courts will sit for a total of 108,500 days – the highest figure in almost a decade, helping to tackle the court backlog, officials say.
Fees for criminal legal aid work in police stations and youth courts have been increased by £24 million. And the Government has also announced its ‘intention to consult’ on an increase to civil legal aid fees for housing and immigration cases.
Major cuts to legal aid under the Conservatives have been blamed for preventing access to justice among some vulnerable groups.
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Councils in England Set for Above-Inflation Boost
This week the Government announced a £69 billion funding package for local councils in England.
Local authorities across England will receive a real-terms – i.e. above inflation – increase of 3.5% in funding for 2024-25, following a real-terms cut in their spending power of around 40% since 2010.
The new package includes a new £600 million Recovery Grant aimed at supporting councils most in need, and £3.7 billion specifically for social care services. Rural communities will see an average 5% increase in their core spending power, the Government says.
In central Government, spending power looks set to be constrained. The Green Party has criticised the Chancellor’s call for Government departments to identify five per cent efficiency savings, with co-leader Adrian Ramsay describing it as “cuts to services” and arguing for increased taxation on the wealthy instead.
Government Re-Nationalises Military Housing
The Government has announced a major deal this week to bring more than 36,000 military homes back into public ownership, in what ministers describe as an effort to address “chronic underinvestment” in armed forces accommodation.
The agreement, which covers 36,347 properties, aims to improve living conditions for military families and generate long-term savings for taxpayers. It marks a significant reversal of the 1996 privatisation of military housing under John Major’s Conservative Government.
Recent reports have highlighted serious problems with military accommodation. A House of Commons Defence Committee report published this month found that two-thirds of Service Families Accommodation was “essentially no longer fit for purpose,” with widespread issues of damp and mould.
Government figures show that more than 9,000 incidents of damp and mould were reported across military housing in 2022-23, with complaints rising by 40% in a single year. There were also over 500 flooding incidents during the same period.
The poor state of military housing has been linked to falling morale and retention problems within the armed forces. Recent surveys show that only 40% of personnel are satisfied with service life, down from 60% in 2010. Nearly one-third of service personnel cited housing conditions as increasing their intention to leave the forces.
The National Audit Office estimated it cost taxpayers between £2.2 billion and £4.2 billion more in the first 21 years of prioritisation than if the properties had remained in public ownership.
Compensation for LGBT+ Veterans
LGBT+ veterans who were dismissed from the Armed Forces due to their sexual orientation or gender identity will receive up to £70,000 each in compensation.
The Government has increased the total funding available to £75 million, with a base payment of £50,000 and additional payments of up to £20,000 for those affected by the discriminatory ban between 1967 and 2000.
New Hospice Cash
On Thursday (it was a big day for buried announcements), the Government announced £100 million in extra hospice funding over the next two years in England, covering buildings, equipment and accommodation.
Only a third of hospice funding comes from the public purse, while the rest comes from fundraising.
Foreign Policy and Defence
The Government has launched a new campaign against dirty money with fresh sanctions targeting Russia‘s ‘shadow fleet’ of oil vessels.
A landmark UK-Germany defence pact has been signed. Military personnel received their largest pay increase in decades.
Relatedly, military veterans will now get prioritised access to social housing. Another £3.5 million has been allocated for homeless veterans’ support.