The government's commitment to make £21bn savings by 2008
across all ministerial departments, which was restated in last
week's Budget, will depend on the success of new IT projects and
the skills of the IT workforce.
Gordon Brown last week said the government would achieve the £21bn
in efficiency savings recommended by the Gershon efficiency review,
which was published last year. He said the government had already
made £2bn in savings and would hit the £21bn target by 2008.
Philip Virgo, strategic adviser at the Institute for the Management
of Information Systems, said, "This is the first Budget where
government plans are critically dependent on the ability of
Computer Weekly readers to deliver information systems that help
meet governments service delivery objectives, and not just
technology that meets the terms of the contract."
Quentin Maxwell-Jackson, partner and head of central government
advisory services at KPMG, said IT suppliers working for the
government would come under increased pressure to deliver promised
benefits.
"There will be a focus on a more professional IT procurement from
the government, and departments will try to hammer out the best
deals," he said. "Suppliers will have to approach the government a
lot more like they would a private sector customer."