The Audit Commission, which published a scathing report on the council last year, is due to reveal the findings of its re-inspection today. It is widely thought that the new report will be damning. This will confirm Hull as one of the worst-performing local authorities in the country.
Earlier this week, the cabinet committee on local government met to discuss the council's problems. The committee, chaired by John Prescott, includes chancellor Gordon Brown and home secretary David Blunkett.
The leaders of the council's four political parties and the acting chief executive Jan Didrichsen were summoned to Westminster to meet local government minister Nick Raynsford on Thursday.
Sources within the council say there is little chance that the authority will escape intervention.
A special meeting of Hull's council will make the government's decision public at 4.30pm today.
Sources say the most recent draft of the commission's re-inspection found "no progress" on finance and "little progress" on housing.
The report also found that the council has failed to comply with section 3 of the 1999 Local Government Act, which governs the way local authorities consult with stakeholders.
In March last year, a draft of the first Audit Commission report was leaked, stating that Hull's housing revenue account was heading for insolvency. It also castigated the council for a culture of bullying and "service departments acting as independent fiefdoms".
Both the Audit Commission and the ODPM refused to comment.
The re-inspection report is expected to mirror the financial appraisal prepared by the ODPM and presented to Hull's cabinet on 14 October, which heavily criticised the council.
The appraisal said of its housing services: "It is an unfortunate by-product of the changes that have benefited Hull [in government management and maintenance grant] that the leader [Colin Inglis] is more convinced than ever that the doom and gloom scenarios do not have to be taken seriously."
Source
Housing Today
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