Image source: National Audit Office
Head of the National Audit Office (NAO) Gareth Davies is to highlight failing in digital investment and the importance of good quality data in government actions.
The organisation has given advance notice of elements of a speech he will make today at the Houses of Parliament on lessons from the Covid-19 pandemic for public spending efficiencies.
A key feature will include criticisms of government’s record in investing in digital services, which Davies describes as a cornerstone of operational efficiencies.
He states that new services have to fit into a landscape dominated by legacy systems and data and that this can have an adverse impact on citizens – such as in the underpayment of the state pension to many women.
“One of the causes was a reliance on outdated systems,” he will say. “Digital leaders bring experience and understand challenges well. But they often struggle to get the attention, understanding and support they need from other senior decision makers.
“Our work demonstrates the need for a renewed focus on the nuts and bolts of efficient and effective delivery. Too many high level ambitions fail to be translated into concrete plans, adequately resourced and tightly managed.
“The skills and organisational discipline required for this are well understood, and demonstrated in the vaccine development and roll out, but not always sufficiently valued and prioritised in government.”
Value for money
Davies will also highlight the importance of the quality of data in determining the value for money of different government interventions.
“Universal credit’s access to real time income data proved responsive to the surge in demand during the first months of the pandemic,” Davies will say. “And the furlough scheme was better targeted than the self- employed income support scheme because HMRC had more up-to-date income data for people who worked for organisations than those who worked for themselves.
“Having data is one thing, but you also need to be able to share, collate, and make it usable.
“Later in the pandemic the system for calling and booking people for their Covid-19 vaccinations was built rapidly, making good use of available patient data, and proved reliable and effective. Tellingly, widespread use of the NHS app for recording vaccination status has now translated into patients being more willing to engage digitally with the NHS.
“We’ve all benefited from improved use of data in the commercial world, but government’s progress over the last 25 years in this space has been too slow.
“Three key issues to address are: data standards, essential for efficient use of data, held in a consistent way; data quality for accurate and reliable results and maintaining public confidence; and data sharing so citizens don’t need to repeat themselves.
“Getting this right can unlock big efficiency gains.”
Evidence and efficiency
This relates to his broad comments on achieving efficiency, which will claim government often falls short on evidence based decision making. There have been commitments to improve the use of evaluations in spending decisions, but this requires a fundamental change in mindset and behaviour.
Davies will also highlight the importance of basic standards and resilience as big lessons learned during the pandemic.
The need for standards was highlighted by the high risk in procuring personal protective equipment without going through lengthy tender processes; while the pandemic and the following energy crisis have shown the need for a more realistic assessment of risk, taking in the likelihood and impact of adverse events.
“The NAO is now developing a more systematic approach to auditing resilience, and examining how effectively the country is being protected from catastrophic events, and taxpayers from unaffordable bills,” he will say. “We will publish the first in this new series of audits next year.
“To be truly resilient, government must plan for scenarios it previously dismissed as extreme, and revisit existing assessments. This is crucial to achieve value for money not just in the short term but for future generations.”
