Chancellor George Osborne and Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude yesterday joined forces to hail the work of the ERG in finding ‘unprecedented’ savings.
‘Tackling waste and inefficiency across government is a key part of our long-term economic plan,’ said Osborne.
‘These savings have helped protect frontline services and get out public finances back onto a sound footing.’
Maude added: ‘For 2013 the 2014 we have saved taxpayers an unprecedented £14.3bn against a 2009 to 2010 baseline – that’s near £250 for every working household across Britain.
‘I’m proud of what we have done but we know there’s so much more to do.’
Of the savings, £5.4bn comes from improving the government’s commercial contracts, £0.6bn from selling off buildings and terminating leases, £3.3bn from addressing waste and inefficiency in large-scale projects, £4.7bn from reducing the size of the civil service and more than £200m in improved digital services.
The figures come from management information evidenced by departmental reports and, although assured by internal auditors, have not yet been verified by the National Audit Office. The Cabinet Office said the NAO would publish its report on the ERG’s savings shortly.
Last year, the government auditors said they were unable to verify £10bn of savings claimed by the Cabinet Office for 2012/13.
