As with Italy, it is not just the failure to maintain public standards that damages the nation. A foreign media tycoon wields staggering power and control over British politics and yet, so shabby has public life become, that even the pretence of integrity seems too much effort for the political class to muster.

The rhetoric and tone of a recent Channel 4 News piece on local council spending is more reminiscent of the Tax Payer’s Alliance than a quality public service broadcaster.

The £260 billion worth of commitments tied up in Britain's "public, private" state must be opened up to transparency and scrutiny, argues a new OurKingdom report.

Under the Conservative led coalition, ‘transparency’ has become the latest tool in a long-standing war against the state. What chance of applying that principle to the burgeoning PFi industry?

Having been rushed through parliament, the Coalition’s academies bill is a worrying example of just how familiar this ‘new politics’ can feel. Other than a handful of ‘community leaders’ and market fundamentalists, the only beneficiaries will be the private firms circling above.