Office of Government Commerce reveals record value for money savings from collaboration
Released on
15/12/2009
Nigel Smith, Chief Executive of the Office of Government Commerce (OGC), has praised Whitehall and wider public sector achievements in delivering value for money, as a record £1.4 billion savings from collaborative procurement activity have been revealed. The success is outlined in the OGC's Annual Statement Working together: delivering value, published today.
Around £220 billion is spent by the public sector on third party goods and services each year. The OGC's collaborative procurement programme supports both central Whitehall departments and the wider public sector in maximising the value it achieves from this spend through a variety of approaches. This includes championing and facilitating collaboration across the major areas of third party spend, such as energy and travel, and making the procurement process more efficient through the use of frameworks and e-procurement tools.
Speaking about the achievement, Nigel Smith said:
"A great deal of progress has been made in the last year in improving commercial and procurement practices across Whitehall and in the wider public sector. Getting maximum value from Government spend has never been more important than now, and the OGC is helping the public sector deliver this. The momentum we have seen over the past year must be maintained if we are to deliver the savings potentials that have been identified through the Operational Efficiency Programme."
Last year the OGC launched a three year strategy to help Government obtain greater value from third party spend on goods and services, and on improving its commercial operations. Significant achievements made by the public sector over the past year and detailed in the Annual Statement include:
£1.4bn savings made across Government through collaborative procurement, representing an increase of more than 100% over the previous year;
meeting the Lyons target of relocating 20,000 Civil Service posts out of London and the South-East almost one year ahead of target;
the completion of the first full wave of Procurement Capability Reviews, which has led to tangible improvements in procurement practice and capability in numerous areas;
creation of the first comprehensive plan for the delivery of the Government's targets on Sustainable Operations for the Government Estate, drawn up by Government Departments in collaboration with the Centre for Expertise in Sustainable Procurement;
the introduction of the new 'delivery confidence' measure to the Gateway process, which is providing greater clarity on the overall health of projects.
Next year the OGC will be launching a new collaborative procurement badge to signpost the public sector to collaborative frameworks, best practice advice and guidance for specific collaborative procurement initiatives. This badge will provide even greater visibility of the value for money solutions that exist, providing a quick, easy and visual way to help more public sector organisations get greater value for money from their spend.
Click here to see a copy of the OGC's Annual Statement Working together: delivering value
About OGC
The Office of Government Commerce (OGC) is an independent office of HM Treasury, established to help government deliver best value from its spending. The OGC works with central government departments and other public sector organisations to ensure the achievement of six key goals:
Delivery of value for money from third party spend;
Delivery of projects to time, quality and cost, realising benefits;
Getting the best from the government's £30bn estate;
Improving the sustainability of the government estate and operations, including reducing carbon emissions by 12.5% by 2010-11, through stronger performance management and guidance;
Helping achieve delivery of further government policy goals, including innovation, equality, and support for small and medium enterprises (SMEs);
And driving forward the improvement of central government capability in procurement, project and programme management, and estates management through the development of people skills, processes and tools.
OGC provides policy standards and guidance on best practice in procurement, projects and estate management, and monitors and challenges departments' performance against these standards, grounded in an evidence base of information and assurance. It promotes and fosters collaborative procurement across the public sector to deliver better value for money and better public services; and it provides innovative ways to develop government's commercial and procurement capability, including leadership of the Government Procurement Service.
Media contact: Michael Dunning, Media Relations Manager, OGC T: 020 7271 1318 M: 07771 815245 E: michael.dunning@ogc.gsi.gov.uk
