Efficiency plans lack detail and ambition

26 May 05
The efficient government plans for Scotland have come under fire for lack of ambition.

27 May 2005

The efficient government plans for Scotland have come under fire for lack of ambition.

Richard Parry, reader in social policy at Edinburgh University, told the Scottish Parliament finance committee, which is scrutinising the initiative, that the Executive's proposals could offer only modest savings from departmental portfolios.

There was a need for data on the same mix of Scotland-England functions, he said. 'The Executive has [claimed] a high level of compatibility between its initiatives and practices and those being pursued in Whitehall.' But the Scottish plans 'seem less detailed and probably less ambitious than the English targets, where minimum efficiency savings have been set and job savings specified for all departments', he said.

Many health items, such as reducing hospital admissions and drugs prices, were scarcely efficiencies, he said. The savings to be secured from the Executive's own agencies, including the Scottish Prison Service and the Scottish Public Pension Agency, were also low.

PFmay2005

Did you enjoy this article?

AddToAny

Top