Showing 1681 - 1700 of 2699 results

  2. Department of Health: The National Programme for IT in the NHS

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    The National Audit Office reported to Parliament today the results of its examination of the National Programme for IT in the NHS. The Programme’s scope, vision and complexity are wider and more extensive than any ongoing or planned healthcare IT programme in the world and it represents the largest single IT investment in the UK […]

  3. North West Development Agency. Independent Performance Assessment

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    The National Audit Office today published its first two Independent Performance Assessments of Regional Development Agencies, covering the North West Development Agency (NWDA) and the East of England Development Agency (EEDA) respectively. In this first round of assessments, the NWDA scored 20 points out of a possible 24 which is equivalent to performing strongly. The […]

  4. Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Countryside Agency – The right of access to open countryside

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    The right to roam was successfully introduced two months ahead of target, according to a report by the National Audit Office. Information on how to use this new right is generally good, although there are lessons to be learned on estimating and managing costs, with expenditure on the scheme almost double the original estimate. But, […]

  5. East of England Development Agency. Independent Performance Assessment

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    The National Audit Office today published its first two Independent Performance Assessments of Regional Development Agencies, covering the North West Development Agency (NWDA) and the East of England Development Agency (EEDA) respectively. In this first round of assessments, the NWDA scored 20 points out of a possible 24 which is equivalent to performing strongly. The […]

  7. Financial management in the NHS – NHS Summarised Accounts 2004-2005

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    There was a deficit across the NHS as a whole in 2004-05 for the first time since 1999-00. Latest figures also show the deficit has worsened for 2005-06. Compared to 2003-04, the number of NHS bodies with deficits increased, and more of these deficits were significant in size, according to Financial Management in the NHS, […]

  8. VAT on e-commerce

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    The National Audit Office has today backed HM Revenue and Customs’ assessment that the overall risk to VAT revenue from on-line shopping, or e-commerce, is currently low. The Department has been alert to specific areas of risk which have emerged and is well-positioned to tackle these. As activity increases in this fast changing environment, it […]

  9. Department for Constitutional Affairs: Fines Collection

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    Fines are the most common sentence imposed by magistrates’ courts but many offenders are still either unwilling or unable to pay, with the result that Her Majesty’s Courts Service has to take enforcement action against most offenders. Too many offenders leave court without paying their fines in full and too many court hearings are wasted […]

  10. Supporting Small Business

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    Central Government spends over £2.6 billion a year supporting small business. The Small Business Service (SBS) is responsible for leading Government actions for small business primarily through leading on a Government Action Plan. The SBS has delivered some successful projects itself, but to date it does not have measures to establish its overall impact, or […]

  11. Department of Health – The Paddington Health Campus scheme

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    Sir John Bourn, the head of the National Audit Office, reported to Parliament today on the cancellation of the Paddington Health Campus scheme in June 2005 at a cost of £15 million. The scheme was a complex and ambitious attempt to build a world-class healthcare facility and ultimately proved to be beyond the capacity of […]

  12. The Termination of the PFI Contract for the National Physical Laboratory

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    The Department for Trade and Industry successfully transferred risk in the PFI contract to build and manage new facilities for the National Physical Laboratory and protected the taxpayer from bearing the majority of the costs of the project’s problems. Delays during the construction of the new facilities meant that the DTI did not secure the […]

  13. The Provision of Out-of-Hours Care in England

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    There were shortcomings in the process of setting up new arrangements to provide out-of-hours primary medical care in 2004, although there is no evidence that patient safety was compromised, the National Audit Office reported today. The Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) who took over responsibility for organising out-of-hours services from GPs lacked knowledge and experience in […]

  14. A5 Queue relocation in Dunstable

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    A new traffic scheme in Dunstable has not delivered the expected benefits, according to a report by the National Audit Office published today. Dunstable town centre suffers severe traffic congestion, due to limited road capacity and high volumes of heavy goods vehicles, causing poor air quality. The Dunstable A5 queue relocation scheme was designed to […]

  15. The Management of Staff Sickness Absence in the National Probation Service

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    Sir John Bourn, Head of the National Audit Office, reported today that sick leave in the National Probation Service is running at an average of 12.3 days a year for each member of staff, directly costing £31.6 million. The difference between what is being achieved and the Service’s target of nine days amounts to 66,420 working […]

  16. Update on PFI debt refinancing and the PFI equity market

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    An update report by the NAO identifies that the government has secured gains of £137 million from PFI debt refinancings under new arrangements introduced by the Treasury in 2002. These new arrangements followed previous reports by the NAO and the Public Accounts Committee that highlighted the opportunities for the private sector to benefit from refinancing […]

  19. Financial Auditing and Reporting: General Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General 2004-05

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    Government departments are continuing to make progress in improving the quality and timeliness of their accounts which they submit for audit. However, according to head of the National Audit Office Sir John Bourn, a large number of departments will need to make significant further effort if they are to meet the Treasury’s timetable for the […]

  20. Ministry of Defence: Reserve Forces

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    Reserve Forces have provided a vital contribution to recent military operations, Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, today reported to Parliament. As part of the biggest mobilisation since the 1956 Suez Crisis, over 12,000 Reserves have so far served in Iraq. The Ministry of Defence has successfully developed a culture where Volunteer […]