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  1. Fracking for shale gas in England

    Press release

    Published on:

    This report sets out the facts about the government’s support of shale gas development in England.

  2. Preparedness for online safety regulation

    Press release

    Published on:

    Ofcom has made a good start in its preparations for implementing a new online safety regime, and must now manage risks around monitoring, scope and financing, according to a new report by the National Audit Office.

  3. The Procurement of the National Roads Telecommunications Services

    Report Value for money

    Published on:

    The Highways Agency successfully transferred to the private sector the risks associated with procuring a digital information system for England’s motorway network. The procurement lasted five years, however, over twice as long as the Agency originally expected, and two well qualified potential bidders dropped out during a 17 month short listing process, leaving just two […]

  5. The National Programme for IT in the NHS: Progress since 2006

    Report Value for money

    Published on:

    Delivering the National Programme for IT in the NHS is proving to be an enormous challenge. All elements of the Programme are advancing and some are complete, but the original timescales for the electronic Care Records Service, one of the central elements of the Programme, turned out to be unachievable, raised unrealistic expectations and put […]

  6. NAO briefing: Sustainable procurement in government

    Briefing

    Published on:

    This briefing has been prepared in response to a request from the Environmental Audit Committee for an update on the Government’s sustainable procurement commitments and its progress against those commitments.

  7. Big science: Public investment in large scientific facilities

    Report Value for money

    Published on:

    The Government’s investment in large scientific facilities is starting to deliver a significant programme including such projects as the research ship RRS James Cook and the Diamond Synchrotron light source, according to an NAO report published today. Some project teams, however, have significantly underestimated the likely running costs of facilities and more attention needs to […]

  9. Improving the PFI tendering process

    Report Value for money

    Published on:

    The NAO has concluded in a new report published today that the tendering process for PFI projects needs improvement. During 2004-2006, PFI projects took an average of almost three years (34 months) to tender. Although there was substantial variation between sectors with schools, in particular, taking significantly less time to close deals (25 months), the […]

  10. Ensuring food safety and standards

    Press release

    Published on:

    This report examines the effectiveness of regulations to ensure that food is safe and is what it says it is.

  11. Sure Start Children’s Centres

    Report Value for money

    Published on:

    Sure Start Children’s Centres are valued by most of the families who use them, according to the National Audit Office. The families reached by children’s centres are some of the most disadvantaged, though the early signs are that more still needs to be done to reach and support some of the most excluded groups. The […]

  13. Improving procurement in further education colleges in England

    Report Value for money

    Published on:

    Each year the 384 further education colleges in England spend £1.6 billion on a range of goods and services from books and stationery to examination fees and energy bills. Some colleges recognise the benefits of introducing more efficient and effective processes, but many need to improve their processes substantially, and could contribute to plans to […]

  15. Identity and Passport Service: Introduction of ePassports

    Report Value for money

    Published on:

    The Identity and Passport Service has successfully completed its project to introduce electronic passports, or ePassports, on time and to the required international standards. However, longer term risks to value for money remain because of the newness of the technology and unknown performance of border control readers in high-volume situations, a National Audit Office report […]

  18. Ministry of Defence. Delivering digital tactical communications through the Bowman CIP programme

    Report Value for money

    Published on:

    The Ministry of Defence’s £2.4 billion programme to transform battlefield communications, command and control through the joint introduction of Bowman digital radios and the advanced Combat Infrastructure Platform (CIP) to an exacting 30 month timescale, has been recast. A revised programme and a further £121 million of funding have been approved to deliver the capabilities […]

  20. The South Eastern Passenger Rail Franchise

    Report Value for money

    Published on:

    The Strategic Rail Authority successfully managed the termination of Connex South Eastern’s franchise after the SRA lost confidence in the company’s financial management, according to the National Audit Office. Taxpayers’ interests were largely protected and passenger services maintained. But this case did highlight lessons for the awarding and managing of franchises. In June 2003, the […]