House Of Commons Committee Of Public Accounts Civil Service Reform Hc 473
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House Of Commons Committee Of Public Accounts Civil Service Reform Hc 473
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Author : Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts
language : en
Publisher: The Stationery Office
Release Date : 2013-09-20
House Of Commons Committee Of Public Accounts Civil Service Reform Hc 473 written by Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts and has been published by The Stationery Office this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2013-09-20 with Political Science categories.
The 2012 Civil Service Reform Plan (the Plan), published in June 2012, outlines plans to transform the civil service so that it is sharper and quicker, more delivery-focused, and has sufficient commercial, digital, project and change management skills. The Cabinet Office is responsible for overseeing implementation of the Plan. The Committee hope that the reforms and enhanced capabilities will help prevent the failures in project and programme delivery it has seen so often, but is concerned, however, that government has not set itself objective measures for assessing the impact of its reforms. If the public is to have confidence in the system for holding permanent secretaries accountable, the Government must be clear about the detail of what each permanent secretary is expected to achieve and how their performance will be assessed. Commercial and contracting skills in the civil service remain weak and underdeveloped, despite the many attempts to address this skills deficiency in recent years. Efforts to fill skills gaps are hindered by real or perceived barriers to recruiting people with the necessary expertise and paying them enough. The process for overseeing major projects lacks real teeth and is seemingly unable to stop ill-conceived or poorly-managed projects. Yet the Government will only be successful in cutting public spending with minimum impact on frontline services if it finds new and innovative ways to deliver its programmes. This innovation can only be implemented if the Civil Service has the necessary skills and competencies.
House Of Commons Committee Of Public Accounts The New Homes Bonus Hc 114
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Author : Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts
language : en
Publisher: The Stationery Office
Release Date : 2013-10-31
House Of Commons Committee Of Public Accounts The New Homes Bonus Hc 114 written by Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts and has been published by The Stationery Office this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2013-10-31 with Architecture categories.
The New Homes Bonus was introduced as a financial incentive for local authorities to encourage the building of new homes. The scheme is funded from existing local authority grants. £7.5 billion will have been redistributed between councils by 2018-19, so there is a lot of money at stake. It is clearly vital that the incentives work and the Government achieves its aim. It is therefore disappointing that after more than two years of the scheme being up and running, no evaluation is in place and no credible data is available to show whether the scheme is working or not. So far the areas which have gained most money tend to be the areas where housing need is lowest. The areas that have lost most tend to be those where needs are greatest. The Department has yet to demonstrate whether the New Homes Bonus works. Is it helping to create more new homes than would have been built anyway? Is it the best way for Government to use its limited resources to create more homes where they are needed most? Its planned evaluation of the Bonus scheme is now urgent
The Rural Broadband Programme Hc 834
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Author : Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts
language : en
Publisher: The Stationery Office
Release Date : 2014-04
The Rural Broadband Programme Hc 834 written by Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts and has been published by The Stationery Office this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2014-04 with Broadband communication systems categories.
The Government has failed to deliver meaningful competition in the procurement of its £1.2 billion rural broadband programme, leaving BT effectively in a monopoly position. Despite warnings the Department for Culture, Media and Sport has allowed poor cost transparency and the lack of detailed broadband rollout plans to create conditions whereby alternative suppliers may be crowded out. Whilst BT claims it is making further concessions, this is not impacting on rural communities. Local authorities are still contractually prevented from sharing information to see if they are securing best terms for the public money they spend. Communities can still not access the detailed data they need to understand whether they will be covered by BT's scheme in their area. The lack of transparency on costs and BT's insistence on non-disclosure agreements is symptomatic of BT's exploiting its monopoly position. The Department needs to work urgently with all local authorities to publish detailed mapping of their implementation plans, down to full (7-digit) postcode level. The information should include speed of service, as soon as that is available. The Department should collect, analyse and publish data on deployment costs in the current programme, to inform its consideration of bids from suppliers under the next round of fundingMargaret Hodge was speaking as the Committee published its 50th Report of this Session which, on the basis of evidence from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and BT, examined the roll out of the rural broadband programme
House Of Commons Committee Of Public Accounts Student Loan Repayments Hc 886
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Author : Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts
language : en
Publisher: The Stationery Office
Release Date : 2014-02-14
House Of Commons Committee Of Public Accounts Student Loan Repayments Hc 886 written by Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts and has been published by The Stationery Office this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2014-02-14 with Education categories.
There is at present around £46 billion of outstanding student loans on the Government's books, and this figure is set to rise dramatically to £200 billion by 2042 (in 2013 prices). By 2042 there will be an estimated 6.5 million borrowers of student loans. At the same time estimates for the amount of loans that will not be repaid are also rising and the Government assumes that 35-40% of outstanding loans will never be repaid. That is some £16 billion to £18 billion on the current debt of £46 billion and £70 billion to £80 billion on the estimated value of student loans by 2042. The Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (the Department) is not doing enough to secure value for money from its collection arrangements. The Department is unable to accurately forecast student loan repayments, and does not have a sufficient understanding of the likely future cost of non-repayment to the taxpayer. The Student Loans Company is not doing enough to ensure that it identifies and collects all the repayments due, given the substantial size of the financial assets involved, and will need to demonstrate value for money from the proposed sale of the student loans book.
House Of Commons Committee Of Public Accounts Universal Credit Early Progress Hc 619
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Author : Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts
language : en
Publisher: The Stationery Office
Release Date : 2013-11-07
House Of Commons Committee Of Public Accounts Universal Credit Early Progress Hc 619 written by Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts and has been published by The Stationery Office this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2013-11-07 with Social Science categories.
Universal Credit is the DWP's single biggest programme and enjoys cross-party support, yet its implementation has been extraordinarily poor. The failure to develop a comprehensive plan has led to extensive delay and the waste of a yet to be determined amount of public money. £425 million has been spent so far on the programme. It is likely that much of this, including at least £140 million worth of IT assets, will now have to be written off. Lack of day-to-day control meant early warning signs were missed, with senior managers becoming aware of problems only through ad hoc reviews. Pressure to deliver a programme of this magnitude within such an ambitious timescale created a fortress culture where only good news was reported and problems were denied. There has been a shocking absence of control over suppliers, with the Department failing to implement the most basic procedures for monitoring and authorising expenditure. The pilot programme is not a proper pilot. Its scope is limited and does not deal with the key issues that Universal Credit must address: the volume of claims; their complexity; change in claimants' circumstances; and the need for claimants to meet conditions for continuing entitlement to benefit. The programme will not hit its current target of enrolling 184,000 claimants by April 2014. The Department will have to speed up the later stages of the programme if it is to meet the 2017 completion date but that will pose new risks. Meeting any specific timetable from now on is less important than delivering the programme successfully
House Of Commons Committee Of Public Accounts Police Procurement Hc 115
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Author : Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts
language : en
Publisher: The Stationery Office
Release Date : 2013-09-17
House Of Commons Committee Of Public Accounts Police Procurement Hc 115 written by Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts and has been published by The Stationery Office this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2013-09-17 with Law categories.
Police forces pay widely varying prices for very similar items, which means money is being wasted. The price paid for such basic items as standard-issue boots can vary from £25 to £114, or £14 to £43 for handcuffs. This is even the case where items are identical. It cannot be right that prices paid for the same type of high-visibility jacket varied by as much as 33%. With central funding being cut, police forces must ensure they get best value for money from procurement so that they can focus resources on fighting crime. Forces can make big savings through bulk-buying of items, but have been unable to agree on the most simple things, like how many pockets they should have on their uniforms. The Department cannot persuade enough individual forces to cooperate with its attempts to introduce more centralised procurement, in part because forces are sceptical about the commercial competence of procurement officers working at the centre. National contracts with suppliers are not used by enough forces and do not cover many basic goods and services. Forces' use of the new, online police procurement 'hub' is also woefully below the Home Office's expectations. By 2013, a miniscule 2% of items were being bought through this central hub, against a target of 80% by the end of this Parliament. Police and Crime Commissioners have authority over local spending but, as the Department remains accountable for public money voted by Parliament, it cannot step back from value for money issues
House Of Commons Committee Of Public Accounts Charges For Customer Telephone Lines Hc 617
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Author : Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts
language : en
Publisher: The Stationery Office
Release Date : 2013-11-11
House Of Commons Committee Of Public Accounts Charges For Customer Telephone Lines Hc 617 written by Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts and has been published by The Stationery Office this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2013-11-11 with Political Science categories.
Telephone services are a vital part of government support, accounting for 43% of all customer contacts. But departments are continuing to make extensive use of higher rate phone numbers for customer telephone lines despite the fact that many people are put off calling as a result. The most vulnerable callers, on the lowest incomes, face some of the highest charges. Costs to callers are even higher because the caller has to endure long waiting times and poor customer service. In the face of this evidence we welcome the Cabinet Office's acknowledgement that it was "inappropriate" for vulnerable citizens to pay a substantial charge to access public services and its commitment to establish best practice in this field and ensure it is followed across government
House Of Commons Committee Of Public Accounts Progress In Delivering The Thameslink Programme Hc 296
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Author : Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts
language : en
Publisher: The Stationery Office
Release Date : 2013-10-29
House Of Commons Committee Of Public Accounts Progress In Delivering The Thameslink Programme Hc 296 written by Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts and has been published by The Stationery Office this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2013-10-29 with Business & Economics categories.
The first proposals to modernize the Thameslink route and increase capacity were developed by a succession of rail industry sponsors but nothing much happened until the Department for Transport became sponsor in 2005. The Department has delivered the first phase of the infrastructure project under budget and on time. The other two aspects of the programme are going less well. The procurement of new trains through a £1.6 billion PFI deal has taken over three years longer than expected. And the timetable and approach for letting the new franchise have been revised. The planned completion date has been put back to 2018. But meeting the timetable for delivering the new trains will be very demanding and risky. The Committee is also sceptical about using PFI to fund this project. It is alarming that the Department compared the PFI option against only one other private sector option and did not construct a public sector comparator to understand better the relative costs, risks and rewards of choosing a PFI funding route over a public one. Another source of worry is the small size of the Department's core Thameslink team - just five people for a programme of this size and complexity. The impression that there is a scarcity of these skills is reinforced by the apparent need to move the key civil servant leading the Thameslink team, the man whose experience, skills and continuity have been crucial to the delivery of the programme, over to the High Speed 2 team
House Of Commons Committee Of Public Accounts The Fight Against Malaria Hc 618
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Author : Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts
language : en
Publisher: The Stationery Office
Release Date : 2013-11-15
House Of Commons Committee Of Public Accounts The Fight Against Malaria Hc 618 written by Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts and has been published by The Stationery Office this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2013-11-15 with Business & Economics categories.
The Department for International Development is committed to tackling malaria, which affected 219 million people in 2010 and led to 660,000 deaths. However, there is concern that spending by DFID on measures to combat the disease, rising each year to £500 million a year by 2015, may not provide good value as the Department does not have good enough infrastructure everywhere to manage the expenditure effectively. About half of the total number of malaria cases worldwide occur in just two countries - Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo - but the Department has been spreading its resources across 17 countries. It now agrees it should do more work in these two countries but has yet to complete an analysis which would ensure well-informed decisions on where to focus resources. Cuts in funding carry their own risks. On the other hand, long-term commitments can create an equally long-term dependence on UK funding. DfID need to plan and support long term sustainable programmes to combat malaria for which developing countries can take responsibility themselves. DfID must ensure their actions do not have unintended consequences. The Department, for example, the mass distribution of free or subsidised bed nets can damage local businesses selling locally produced nets. It is also essential that the Department make the most of quick, cheap and easy diagnostic tests to increase the number of people who can be quickly diagnosed and effectively treated. This could lead to a halving of the current expenditure on drugs.
House Of Commons Committee Of Public Accounts Whole Of Government Accounts 2011 12 Hc 667
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Author : Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts
language : en
Publisher: The Stationery Office
Release Date : 2013-12-12
House Of Commons Committee Of Public Accounts Whole Of Government Accounts 2011 12 Hc 667 written by Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Committee of Public Accounts and has been published by The Stationery Office this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2013-12-12 with Business & Economics categories.
The Whole of Government Accounts for 2011-12 presents the combined financial activities of some 3,000 organisations. It provides vital data on which Government needs to act. Key issues have been identified, such as the £19.4 billion liability for clinical negligence claims. But it is frustrating to see other issues seemingly ignored in long-term policy making and spending decisions. In one year, the public sector was defrauded of over £20 billion and the tax gap rose to £35 billion. The financial liabilities for dealing with nuclear waste also keep growing. There is room for improvement in the document itself and how it is used. Users find it hard to understand, for example, why the Government debt and deficit highlighted in the WGA differ from those reported in the ONS's National Accounts. Also, by changing definitions in its commentary published alongside the WGA, the Treasury makes it difficult to track changes over time. The Treasury's introduction in the commentary of a new concept of so-called 'direct' expenditure leaves out key costs such as the interest paid on the National Debt. The publicly owned and controlled bodies - such as Network Rail and the taxpayer owned banks - are still being excluded, in defiance of normal accounting rules. The usefulness of the WGA is also being limited by the length of time it takes to produce the document and by poor quality data from some of the bodies. The accounts have again been qualified over the completeness, timeliness and accuracy of the information supplied for schools and academies