Economy

The government has repeatedly come a cropper when outsourcing work, but the number of outsourced projects is only going to grow. Mark Smulian attends a round table on how the civil service can become a shrewder customer

A new Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is to become fully operational in April 2014, under plans to merge the Office of Fair Trading and the Competition Commission.

A further £22bn in spending cuts or tax rises will be required in the period of the next spending review to 2017-18 if the government is to achieve its goal of eradicating the structural deficit, new analysis says.

The UK’s postcode address database should be released for free use by private companies, the chief executive of the new Open Data Institute (ODI) has told CSW.

Local authorities could have planning powers taken away if they perform poorly, Bob Kerslake, the permanent secretary of the Department for Communities and Local Government and head of the civil service, confirmed on Monday.

Efforts by the Treasury to incorporate long-term analyses into its budgetary calculations are being hampered by the political calculations of successive governments, Nick Macpherson, permanent secretary at HM Treasury, said on Monday.

To ensure greater international competitiveness and help boost Britain’s economy in the long term, the Treasury is prioritising investment in infrastructure. Colin Marrs appraises the government’s efforts

The government is eager to increase the amount of goods and services it buys from small and medium-sized enterprises. Mark Smulian attends a round table on the opportunities, the challenges – and the solutions

Over the past three decades, no government has been able to achieve reductions in the administrative costs of central government equal to those proposed by the coalition, a report from Oxford University said earlier this month.

The new head of the Welsh Civil Service, Derek Jones, will take up his position on 8 October after a four year hiatus from the civil service. He replaces Dame Gillian Morgan, who retired in August. Jones was the director of business and partnerships at Cardiff University, and prior to this role he spent 30 years as a civil servant, including as a senior director.

Twice before, the Public Administration Select Committee has called for reforms to the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments – but to little avail. Now it’s having another go: Colin Marrs reports on its latest assault.

HMRC should introduce a deliberate error into the taxation system so that it overclaims taxes and has to repay them at the end of the year, Dr David Halpern, the head of the government’s Behavioural Insights Team, has suggested.