Ministers threaten to withhold cash from English councils on four-day week

As one local authority carries out trial, government plans to use ‘financial levers’ to stop practice

Councils pursuing a four-day working week are being threatened with financial penalties by the government, amid an increasingly bitter row between ministers and town halls over post-pandemic working practices.

After announcing a £4bn cash injection to support councils in England amid a worsening crisis for local authorities, the government said it planned to use “financial levers” to stop councils from offering four-day working weeks for staff.