Student achievement rates in English higher education institutions have remained high during a period of considerable expansion of student numbers, although rates vary widely between institutions. The higher education sector will have to recruit and retain more students from hitherto poorly represented social groups and help them to succeed if the government’s learning targets are … Read more
The National Audit Office has published the results of its examination into the inappropriate adjustment of waiting lists at a number of NHS trusts. In July of this year the NAO published its report Inpatient and outpatient waiting in the NHS looking at the accuracy and management of NHS waiting lists. In that report it … Read more
Sir John Bourn, Head of the National Audit Office, recognised in his Report to Parliament today the further progress which has been made by the Ministry of Defence in implementing Resource Accounts. The MoD has put in hard work and made great strides during the last year. However, Sir John has qualified his opinion on … Read more
It is important that organisations work well together and that departments tackle the barriers to joint working so that long lasting improvements are made to the quality of services that the public receive, Sir John Bourn, the Head of the NAO, reported to Parliament today. The report evaluates the achievements of 5 initiatives and highlights … Read more
“As PFI deals are long term arrangements it is essential that authorities and contractors work together as partners to achieve successful outcomes.
“The main elements of a successful relationship between the public and private sectors are to adopt a partnership approach supported by the right contractual framework, to have the right skills mix present at the right time, and to make the partnership work in practice.
“My report will help both authorities and contractors to achieve good relationships on PFI projects to assist the delivery of public services procured under the PFI.”
“I am concerned, however, that comprehensive indicators are not yet in place to measure the success of the assessment phase in reducing project risk, which is key to future successful acquisition. Nor are there measures to fully assess whether all of the benefits of Smart Acquisition are being achieved. MoD should give priority to establishing such indicators.”
Regulatory impact assessments (RIA) have helped contribute to better policy making and reducing the costs to business according to a National Audit Office report published today. It concludes that while there are many examples of good practice in the process of preparing RIAs across Whitehall, there is room for improvement. Presenting the report to Parliament, … Read more
The Inland Revenue, when required to make major enhancements to its national insurance computer system (NIRS 2) to accommodate significant legislative changes, decided to award a contract extension to Accenture, its existing supplier. And, according to a report from the National Audit Office, published today, the contract extension: offered better value for money than the … Read more
Sir John Bourn, Head of the National Audit Office, told Parliament today that the funding competition used to finance the refurbishment of the Treasury building in Whitehall saved the taxpayer £13 million. The competition resulted in savings of 7% of the cost of the deal over the lifetime of the project and assisted greatly in … Read more
Competition helps provide value for money and the Ministry of Defence (MOD) uses non-competitive procurement only where there are compelling reasons. It may not always be practicable or sensible to use competitive procurement, however, and over the last five years one quarter of the annual £9 billion defence equipment and services budget has been spent … Read more
