Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reported to Parliament today that good progress has been made by departments to improve their risk management capacity since his previous report in August 2000, although departments have further to go to demonstrate that they have made effective risk management a central part of their day […]
There are significant uncertainties in plans for cleaning-up Sellafield. The Authority is working to understand and address project under-performance.
Recent changes have allowed Government departments to make improved use of money, assets and other resources. Many departments have begun to take advantage of these tools but they can still do more to better manage what they have so that they can deliver high quality public services, Sir John Bourn, the head of the NAO, […]
Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reported to Parliament today that 23 per cent (over 14,000 houses) of the family quarters estate held in Great Britain by the Ministry of Defence (the Department) was vacant, costing some £39 milliona year in rent and maintenance. The Executive disposed of nearly 2,000 houses in […]
This report examines the government’s management of the reduction in Official Development Assistance spending.
This report provides information on managing PFI contracts when they end and considers whether government is preparing for expiry appropriately.
More could be done to rehabilitate prisoners serving short sentences and reduce their risk of re-offending, according to a National Audit Office report today. The National Offender Management Service (NOMS), responsible for managing such prisoners, has little information on the quality, cost or effectiveness of its rehabilitation activities. More than 60,000 prisoners serve sentences […]
The 2003 contract for hospital consultants delivered many expected benefits, but there is room for improvement in how trusts manage their consultants.
This is our second report on backlogs for elective and cancer care. It examines the design of NHSE’s recovery plan, how the NHS has been implementing the plan and the ongoing risks NHSE has to manage.
There is scope to reduce the balances held in the National Lottery Distribution Fund, which stood at 2.7 billion in March 2004, according to a report published today by Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office. But significant reductions could take time and lottery distributors face a range of uncertainties and risks in […]
This report examines the Ministry of Defence’s management of its large and complex infrastructure projects at nuclear-regulated sites.
Value for money is not being achieved across all trusts in the planning, procurement and use of high value equipment. There are significant variations across England in levels of activity and a lack of comparable information about performance and cost of machine use.
The environment for government borrowing has become more challenging in recent years – requiring sustained focus from government.
Explore flood defence data by region or local authority with our interactive map tool.
This report evaluates whether government’s approach to managing the risks of flooding and coastal erosion is achieving value for money.
Since 2003, government departments have improved the management of their finances. But stronger financial management is now more important than ever to ensure that every pound of public money is spent to best effect in an increasingly challenging financial environment. Central government manages more financial resources than ever before, and these are expected to grow […]
Sir John Bourn, the Comptroller and Auditor General, reported to Parliament today that the financial health of the further education sector in England is improving but that 13% of colleges are still in poor financial health. He identified a number of key management practices, which are typical of colleges in good financial health and which […]
This NAO report examines whether the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) has a robust approach to managing its overseas estate.
Departments have acted quickly to reduce staff numbers and this should bring significant savings. To sustain these savings, and deliver long-term value for money improvements, staff numbers must stay at these reduced levels and departments must develop new ways of working.
Since 2005, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has incurred a total of £642 million in financial penalties relating to the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in England.