senior ODPM sources have denied that the bringing together of English Partnerships and the Housing Corporation under the wing of Richard McCarthy, the director general for sustainable communities, indicates that the two quangos will soon be merged (HT 13 February, page 7).
A Northern source also said: “I would say combining the Audit Commission and corporation would make more sense, especially as the commission is devising its new approach to inspection and the corporation is in the throes of an end-to-end review.”

Meanwhile, councils have expressed fears that the disbanding of the community housing taskforce, part of the ODPM reorganisation, will mean they have to pay out more for consultants. This is because the taskforce members may become less effective when they are working from nine regional offices.

Source

Housing Today