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Paul Dale

Paul Dale

Birmingham still struggling to improve perceptions

The Cushman & Wakefield report on the best UK business cities contains good and bad news for Birmingham, but the small print is worrying, argues Paul Dale. d Read

New Street judge hits back at Gateway 'whingers'

The chairman of the judging panel which chose the winning design for Birmingham’s refurbished New Street Station has hit out at the scheme's critics. Read

Poster campaign tells London business to try Birmingham

A major city council advertising campaign promoting Birmingham as a great place to do business is to be launched in London. Read

AWM relaunches hunt for chairman after search fails

A nine-month search to find a new chairman for Advantage West Midlands has ended in embarrassing failure. Read

Birmingham council builds 'show office' for staff

City council bosses in Birmingham have defended a decision to spend £80,000 on building a “demonstration office” for its staff. Read

City council's long wait for planners to see sense

Yelps of pain from the bowels of Birmingham Council House as arms are twisted and backbones stiffened. Read

Whitby hails 'stunning' plans for New Street Station

The makeover planned for New Street Station will give Birmingham a building of global importance, city council leader Mike Whitby has insisted. Read

Birmingham City Council wants to sell Friends Institute

The Friends Institute in Birmingham is facing almost certain closure after it emerged that the city council wants permission to sell the 110-year-old building. Read

Capita in new software chaos at Birmingham City Council

Consultancy firm Capita is at the centre of further Birmingham City Council computer chaos after expensive software to detect misuse of the internet by staff failed to work. Read

Birmingham's MIPIM mission seeks more private support

Private sector companies are being urged to contribute £265,000 towards Birmingham City Council's trip to the MIPIM international property fair in France. Read

People power set for re-launch in Birmingham

Birmingham’s people-power experiment will be re-launched after a Government report said council devolution was failing. Read

Council resurfaces Friends Institute car park but says it may still close

Councillors who said they couldn’t afford to replace an ancient boiler at a Birmingham community centre are under pressure to explain how they found £8,000 to resurface the building’s car park. Read

Birmingham council spends £200m on money-saving scheme

Private sector outsourcing firm Capita and its partner organisations will be paid almost £200 million to show Birmingham City Council how to save money and run services more efficiently. Read

Birmingham councillor dismisses climate change doom as fantasy

Predictions that climate change will lead to loss of life in Birmingham and put scores of firms out of businesses if more is not done to tackle global warming have been dismissed by a leading Tory city councillor as about as likely as Aston Villa winning the Premier League. Read

Battle over Birmingham Library about to intensify

Alarm bells are ringing at Birmingham Council House over the expectation that Culture Minister Margaret Hodge is on the verge of announcing whether the Central Library is to be listed. Read

Civil Servant apprenticeships for Birmingham

A unique scheme to improve the image of the Civil Service by offering apprenticeships to school-leavers has been launched in Birmingham. Read

Gordon Brown in Birmingham to discuss £64m aid for region

The Prime Minister is to attend crucial talks with business and council leaders in Birmingham following an historic meeting of his Cabinet in the city. Read

Friends Institute boiler 'can be repaired' says council

The campaign to save the Friends’ Institute in Birmingham has been given fresh hope after the city council decided a “beyond repair” boiler can be mended after all. Read

Jamaica and India may train in Birmingham before 2012 Olympics

Jamaica, Barbados and India are the latest countries being courted by Birmingham with a view to using the city as a training base before the 2012 Olympic Games in London. Read

Budget write-offs the Birmingham City Council way

Financial wizards at Birmingham City Council have invented a new way of accounting which may be useful to us all during these difficult times. Read

Author Profile

Paul Dale has been writing about local government in the West Midlands for more than 20 years. The Post's public affairs editor, he is a previous political editor of the Coventry Evening Telegraph and Local Government Correspondent of the Oxford Mail.

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