Government 'lacks capability' to address longstanding digital procurement issues
06 Jun Commercial

Government 'lacks capability' to address longstanding digital procurement issues

Public Accounts Committee warns of “an insufficient level of digital commercial skills across departments”
by Tevye Markson
DSIT building 'one-stop tech shop' for public sector procurement
09 Jun Commercial
DSIT building 'one-stop tech shop' for public sector procurement
If the government is serious about closing the SME gap, it must go beyond ticking boxes and embrace structural change
29 May Commercial
If the government is serious about closing the SME gap, it must go beyond ticking boxes and embrace structural change
Home Office seeks 'AI infrastructure delivery partner'
28 May Commercial
Home Office seeks 'AI infrastructure delivery partner'
MoD to decide on future of troubled Ajax programme by end of year
17 Aug 2022 Commercial
MoD to decide on future of troubled Ajax programme by end of year
Department insists costs won't go above £5.5bn after being told to "fix or fail" armoured vehicle programme
Legacy costs take spending on digital border programme to £700m
11 Aug 2022 Commercial
Legacy costs take spending on digital border programme to £700m
But Home Office clams there ‘has been no increase or acceleration’ in underlying cost of scheme
The savvy shopper: CCS boss Simon Tse on delivering value for money and supporting policy priorities
11 Aug 2022 Commercial
The savvy shopper: CCS boss Simon Tse on delivering value for money and supporting policy priorities
The Crown Commercial Service has helped the public sector achieve record commercial benefits of almost £3bn, as well as respond to new global crises. Here, CCS chief executive Simon Tse shares his lessons from the past year
Driving commercial awareness in the civil service Partner Content
11 Aug 2022 Commercial
Driving commercial awareness in the civil service
Clare Gibbs, Senior Director and Commercial Specialist at the Cabinet Office, describes how her team is looking to embed commercial awareness from the word go
CCS consultancy spend goes up, but agency-staff costs plummet
10 Aug 2022 Commercial
CCS consultancy spend goes up, but agency-staff costs plummet
Annual report says Crown Commercial Service delivered almost £3bn in benefits to the public sector in 2021-2022
'Little did I realise I would be working on some of the largest challenges of our lifetime from day one' – life as a commercial lead
02 Aug 2022 Commercial
'Little did I realise I would be working on some of the largest challenges of our lifetime from day one' – life as a commercial lead
A huge diversity of people and roles make up the modern civil service. Kobirul Islam helps to ensure outcomes are delivered efficiently at the Home Office. He also co-chairs the Commercial Function’s Positive Support Group
Bosses face £870k in fines over Carillion cover-up
29 Jul 2022 Commercial
Bosses face £870k in fines over Carillion cover-up
FCA says “misleading” statements about contracting giant’s finances aggravated the impact of its 2018 collapse
MPs put lobbying rules under the spotlight after Greensill scandal
27 Jul 2022 Commercial
MPs put lobbying rules under the spotlight after Greensill scandal
Probe will examine weaknesses exposed by the Greensill scandal, including the disclosure of senior officials’ external meetings
Suppliers see progress in government tech-savviness, research finds
19 Jul 2022 Commercial
Suppliers see progress in government tech-savviness, research finds
But tech firms also see continued challenges, including overlapping frameworks and lack of clarity on social-value requirements
Government 'shouldn’t be scrambling' for external hires, Kate Bingham says
18 Jul 2022 Commercial
Government 'shouldn’t be scrambling' for external hires, Kate Bingham says
Ex-Vaccine Taskforce chief says government has not learned lessons from the Covid-19 pandemic
DCMS consultancy spending quadruples in two years
14 Jul 2022 Commercial
DCMS consultancy spending quadruples in two years
Money spent on external advice increased fourfold overnight
The making of the Scheme Delivery Framework Partner Content
08 Jul 2022 Commercial
The making of the Scheme Delivery Framework
The team at National Highways sat down with Proxima to share their thoughts on their new Scheme Delivery Framework. They touched on the success and challenges faced along the way and what the future holds for the procurement team
Home Office perm sec hits back at calls to privatise HM Passport Office
27 Jun 2022 Commercial
Home Office perm sec hits back at calls to privatise HM Passport Office
Hotline performance disproves the argument that “the way to reduce the size of the civil service is to privatise it", Rycroft says
‘Levelling Up’ — delivering the Civil Service’s ‘second headquarters’ in Glasgow Partner Content
17 Jun 2022 Commercial
‘Levelling Up’ — delivering the Civil Service’s ‘second headquarters’ in Glasgow
Melinda Johnson, Commercial Director at the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC), outlines how Glasgow’s new office will provide significant opportunities in Scotland’s biggest city
CCS creates new £194k chief commercial officer role
30 May 2022 Commercial
CCS creates new £194k chief commercial officer role
Government Commercial Organisation boss will lead new directorate and deputise for chief exec Simon Tse
Perm sec admits 'room for improvement' over Scottish Government correspondence delays
26 May 2022 Commercial
Perm sec admits 'room for improvement' over Scottish Government correspondence delays
A quarter of ministerial correspondence replies missed their deadline, as did one in six FoI responses
MPs lambast departments' 'unacceptable' widespread non-compliance with tax-dodge rules
25 May 2022 Commercial
MPs lambast departments' 'unacceptable' widespread non-compliance with tax-dodge rules
Government bodies “should be best placed” to understand IR35 rules, but HMRC partly to blame for "rushed" and poor implementation
From the editor: You are not very good at judging risk. Sorry.
20 May 2022 Commercial
From the editor: You are not very good at judging risk. Sorry.
There are many issues to consider when assessing decisions taken around procurement in the early days of Covid. That’s why a full inquiry is being held
£1,200-a-day consultants make up more than one in 10 of UK Health Security Agency workforce
17 May 2022 Commercial
£1,200-a-day consultants make up more than one in 10 of UK Health Security Agency workforce
Jenny Harries reveals average day rates for management consultants – who are paid between £706 and £3,100 a day
‘We did what we could as quickly as we could’: Treasury perm sec rejects Covid fraud complacency claims
29 Apr 2022 Commercial
‘We did what we could as quickly as we could’: Treasury perm sec rejects Covid fraud complacency claims
Tom Scholar told the Treasury Committee officials put together loan schemes under "exceptional circumstances"
Red light, green light: examining the government's progress on improving its performance
22 Apr 2022 Commercial
Red light, green light: examining the government's progress on improving its performance
CSW assesses progress against key actions set out in the Declaration on Government Reform, and explores how volunteering can boost skills and support key priorities
Driving social value through the New Prisons Programme Partner Content
12 Apr 2022 Commercial
Driving social value through the New Prisons Programme
The Ministry of Justice’s Sue McElroy and Melissa Dudley sat down with Proxima recently to discuss the department’s prison build programme and how it is driving social value
DHSC names IT firm as £18m ‘delivery partner’ on Covid pass Exclusive
11 Apr 2022 Commercial
DHSC names IT firm as £18m ‘delivery partner’ on Covid pass
Netcompany to provide “operational management, incident management and support” as Covid pass use winds down within UK
EXCL: DHSC to pay up to £35m to dispose of unused pandemic PPE Exclusive
08 Apr 2022 Commercial
EXCL: DHSC to pay up to £35m to dispose of unused pandemic PPE
Waste companies to get £17.5m apiece after department admitted plans to burn mountains of equipment