Civil servants question honesty of private partners – and each other
29 Sep Commercial

Civil servants question honesty of private partners – and each other

CSW survey finds two-thirds of officials struggle to find common ground with other government departments
by Beckie Smith
Truss chief of staff Mark Fullbrook no longer paid via lobbying firm, No.10 says
27 Sep Commercial
Truss chief of staff Mark Fullbrook no longer paid via lobbying firm, No.10 says
Cabinet Office ethics team signed off on PM's chief of staff being paid via lobbing firm
26 Sep Commercial
Cabinet Office ethics team signed off on PM's chief of staff being paid via lobbing firm
DWP signs £1.4m deal to tap LinkedIn for recruitment
20 Sep Commercial
DWP signs £1.4m deal to tap LinkedIn for recruitment
Headhunter fees for second fruitless attempt to hire government digital head revealed
15 Sep Commercial
Headhunter fees for second fruitless attempt to hire government digital head revealed
Department releases information on appeal under FoI rules – 18 months after request was made
DWP signs £170k deal for Microsoft Teams training
14 Sep Commercial
DWP signs £170k deal for Microsoft Teams training
Contract with specialist firm covers programmes on ‘managing information’ and ‘running large meetings’
Consultancy Playbook: How to get the best result when sourcing consultants Partner Content
05 Sep Commercial
Consultancy Playbook: How to get the best result when sourcing consultants
The best practices for ensuring successful delivery whilst getting the greatest value from increasingly constrained budgets
MoD to decide on future of troubled Ajax programme by end of year
17 Aug 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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