Prime minister Gordon Brown is unlikely to change the
management of
government IT contracts, says analyst Ovum.
Ovum analyst Eric Woods said,
“There will be an emphasis on showing the benefits to the public
from the investments made over the past 10 years in health,
education and the broader infrastructure.
“The investment made in IT is a vital element of that. We can
expect to hear much more about the use of
PACS [Picture Archiving and Communications system] in
hospitals, online vehicle licensing and e-learning in schools, for
example.”
Woods said the Varney report has the potential to provide the
bridge between IT modernisation and business transformation,
allowing Brown to show the public that big IT contracts can
deliver.
“There is little reason to expect significant changes to
existing or planned major IT projects, with the possible exception
of
ID Cards,” said Woods.
He said, “Though some have speculated about the attitude of the
new PM to the
NHS National Programme for IT (NPfIT), the fact that the
programme is now starting to show real benefits in some areas and
will have new leadership in 2008, suggests there is little reason
for intervention that could interrupt the progress being made.”
The ID-card programme will go ahead, said Woods, with
procurement starting on time, but the ID cards may not be
distributed to the public until after an election, to help avoid
any political flak between supporters and critics of the
scheme.
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