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 […]
The Department for Work and Pensions has made significant progress in delivering services through contact centres so that they are delivering improvements in value for money, but needs to continue to tackle a variety of barriers to exploit their full potential, according to a National Audit Office report published today. The Department’s 60 contact centres […]
The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) is the non-departmental public body which pays statutory financial compensation to victims of violent crime. Its performance has declined since the National Audit Office last reported on it in 2000 and it has not consistently met its targets over that period. In 2006, CICA initiated a major programme of […]
The majority of government departments and agencies are failing to meet targets to make their new buildings and major refurbishments sustainable, according to a report published today by the National Audit Office. As a result, value for money may be lost from the £3billion which departments and agencies spend each year on this activity. A […]
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has made progress in improving the design of some leaflets but could go further to make them easier for the public to understand and get hold of, according to a National Audit Office report published today. The report also found that the DWP could improve how it checks […]
Annual spending on consultants and temporary staff has reduced by £1.5 billion since 2010 when strict spending controls were introduced. However, annual spend is now increasing once more and is between £400 million and £600 million higher than in 2011-12.
The FCO has made significant improvements in the consular service it provides, but further progress is needed to deliver a service which meets the changing needs of Britons overseas, according to a National Audit Office report. The main elements of consular services are advising on overseas travel, issuing passports abroad and assisting Britons in distress […]
The Financial Conduct Authority cannot know whether its activities are reducing the overall scale of financial services mis-selling to consumers. The most prominent example of mis-selling is Payment Protection Insurance (PPI). Between April 2011 and November 2015, firms paid out £22.2 billion in compensation to more than 12 million customers who had bought PPI.
Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reported today on the progress that Departments have made in establishing robust data systems to measure and report performance against 2003-06 Public Service Agreement targets. This report presents the overall findings from the NAO’s examination of the data systems used by 18 Departments and the cross […]
Government-led initiatives to help unemployed people find work are having a real impact. Programmes such as the New Deal have helped reduce the number of people on benefit, and the average length of claims. However, too many people still do not stay in work once they have found it and more now needs to be […]
Most government departments are continuing to produce high quality accounts and are presenting them for audit in a timely fashion. However, Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, had to issue qualified opinions on seven out of 54 sets of departmental resource accounts in 2005-06, compared with two out of 54 sets in […]
Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reported today that significant improvements have been made in HM Prison Service’s catering arrangements resulting in financial savings and improved quality of service. Since 2003-04, savings of some £2.5 million have been made each year from expenditure on food and some £1.7 million a year on […]
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 NAO has published the findings from its investigation into members’ experience of civil service pension administration.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has made progress in improving the design of some leaflets but could go further to make them easier for the public to understand and get hold of, according to a National Audit Office report published today. The report also found that the DWP could improve how it checks […]
The Department for International Development works well with civil society organisations (CSOs) to help some of the world’s poorest people, according to today’s National Audit Office report. But the department needs better information on the effectiveness of CSOs in developing countries, and on the impact of its assistance, if it is to ensure aid is […]
The National Audit Office reported today that, four years into the 10-year NHS Cancer Plan, substantial progress has been made in meeting the Plan’s targets. The thirty-four cancer networks which have been established have achieved important improvements in delivering cancer services across England. However, the networks need to be more effective and to develop partnership […]
Overall levels of violent crime have fallen by 9.0 per cent since 2002-03 and the number of serious violent offences recorded by the police has fallen by 5.9 per cent over the same period. The Home Office’s actions to encourage local areas to address domestic violence and alcohol related crime are likely to have made […]
Today’s report, which is the National Audit Office’s first on the preparations for London 2012, identifies six main risk areas which may impact on the Games: Delivering the Games against an immovable deadline. The need for strong governance and delivery structures given the multiplicity of organisations and groups involved in the Games. The requirement for […]
Since the early 1990s, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), Driving Standards Agency and the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency have made some of their services available either through the internet, by telephone or through business to business computer systems. A report released today by the National Audit Office has found that these developments […]