In September 2021, the NAO hosted a virtual seminar From COVID-19 to Net Zero: How can regulation respond to change? It was an opportunity to hear from thought leaders in regulatory policy and practice on adapting to change in challenging times. Regulation in the UK has entered a period of considerable change, from EU Exit […]
“The world is now living through climate change, not watching it draw near” is the stark warning delivered by the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), in its sixth assessment report (AR6). In risk speak, high-impact, low-likelihood events will become more likely with higher temperatures. With COP 26 fast approaching and extreme weather events becoming […]
This guide provides information on how people can ask questions and raise objections about the accounts of their local authority.
Government departments are making plans for achieving substantial efficiency savings by 2024-25, but what might this mean in practice?
This guide will help ARACs recognise how climate change risks could manifest themselves and support them in challenging senior management on their approach to managing climate change risks.
It’s revealing to look at the timeline of digital transformation initiatives over the last 25 years. Government’s ambition for ‘world class’ services using joined-up systems and data goes back to the mid 1990s, from where we can trace a steady stream of policies and initiatives right through to last autumn’s National Data Strategy. Most of […]
This report sets out the lessons for government and departments to learn from the experience of implementing digital change.
This good practice guidance reflects upon findings and recommendations drawn from 209 reports concerning 350 commercial arrangements that it has published over the past 20 years – including recent examinations of commercial activities triggered in response to the global pandemic.
The NAO’s good practice guide for managing the commercial lifecycle The government’s response to the COVID-19 global pandemic has drawn renewed, and possibly unprecedented, attention to public procurement and commercial practice in government. Our aim at the NAO is to provide an independent and evidence-based perspective, on how public authorities can achieve better outcomes and value […]
This report identifies key issues government will need to consider when attempting to increase its efficiency.
At the National Audit Office, we come across many business cases when looking at government programmes. A strong business case is vital for effective decision making and for successfully delivering intended outcomes. The foundation of a business case is a clear understanding of what success will look like for a programme – the strategic case. […]
Use of process mining to help understand the Home Office’s operation of the Windrush Compensation Scheme
In our ever-increasing digital and automatized world, certain buzzwords are becoming more centre stage in the public sector. One of them is “artificial intelligence”. While the concept, and development, of artificial intelligence is not new (artificial intelligence was first recognised as a formal discipline in the mid-1950s), it is a word that has been casually […]
This framework is intended as a useful tool for policymakers and regulators overseeing any given market.
Good regulation can be used to achieve a range of different aims and opportunities. It can support innovation, make workplaces safer, or help to keep essential services affordable.
We’ve developed a set of principles and examples outlining good practice in Annual Reporting
This report provides our initial thoughts on the learning government can draw from its response to COVID-19 to date.
The shielding programme was a swift government wide response to identify and protect clinically extremely vulnerable (CEV) people against COVID-19. Our recent report on Protecting and supporting the clinically extremely vulnerable during lockdown, shows how government quickly recognised the need to provide food, medicines and basic care to those CEV people shielding. This had to […]
Imagine being asked to design and provide a service that meets the needs of everyone in your street. This crossed my mind when the borough where I live in London became a surge testing location for coronavirus. For me that means producing a service that works for Margaret and David, the retired couple that have […]
Like governments around the world, ours has committed unprecedented amounts of public money to the fight against coronavirus. By the end of 2020, this reached £271 billion in the UK and will continue to increase. As the UK’s independent public spending watchdog, the National Audit Office has been tracking the Government’s pandemic spending commitments, reporting […]