This report examines the evidence base supporting the decision to proceed with the Thames Tideway Tunnel, a tunnel running 25 kilometres from Acton to Abbey Mills, as well as progress achieved to date.
The MoD has developed a strategy that identifies the estate it needs and the 25% of its estate it can dispose of by 2040. However, the strategy and current funding levels allow only for a partial reversal of the decline in the condition of the remaining estate. There is a significant risk that the poor condition of the estate will affect the Department’s ability to provide the defence capability needed.
The cost of modernising the Great Western railway is estimated to be £5.58 billion, an increase of £2.1 billion since 2013, and there are delays to the electrification of the route of at least 18 to 36 months. The Department for Transport and Network Rail have begun to improve the management of the programme but they have more to do to protect value for money in the future.
The Department for Transport agreed to make a £30m grant towards construction of the Garden Bridge despite its concerns over value for money. The NAO’s review does not assess the value for money of the project as a whole.
HS2 is a large, complex and ambitious programme which is facing cost and time pressures. The unrealistic timetable set for HS2 Ltd by the Department means they are not as ready to deliver as they hoped to be at this point.
A third of major government projects due to deliver in the next five years are rated as in doubt or unachievable unless action is taken to improve delivery. Greater transparency on project performance is required.
The Home Office spent at least £830 million between 2003 and 2015 on the e-borders programme and its successors, but has failed, so far, to deliver the full vision. We cannot, therefore view e-borders as having delivered value for money.
Defra, the Rural Payments Agency and Government Digital Service have not worked together effectively to deliver the Common Agricultural Policy Delivery Programme.
The Department for Work and Pensions has successfully introduced automatic enrolment to workplace pensions for large and medium-sized employers. Significant risks remain.
The MoD’s Equipment Plan appears more stable than last year and progress has been maintained, but the Department will need to remain vigilant with regard to future cost increases.
