Operational Delivery

New diagnostic tool from the Institute for Government aims to help officials assess viability of public service markets

Public Accounts Committee chair Meg Hillier questions MoJ's "management of taxpayers’ money" – but MoJ points to savings made from the closure

Work and pensions committee report calls for simplified payment structure and better categorisation of participants

Chancellor chairs first meeting of the public expenditure committee (PEX) — with DWP and DfID spending said to be under scrutiny

Civil servants not facing "doom and gloom" cabinet secretary tells CSW, as he hails "fantastic results” in spite of austerity

EVEL plans should be "piloted on statutory instruments"; pension freedoms could be putting savers at risk – the latest from the House of Commons select committees

MoJ will not seek single supplier for debt collection – and department confirms it will keep enforcement in-house

The government's lead non-executive says public services are now at a "critical juncture"

Interim chief inspector of probation Paul Wilson tells CSW he is optimistic about the 'Transforming Rehabilitation' scheme – but warns over “more for less” culture

Justice secretary Michael Gove tells MPs that Just Solutions International – the commercial arm of the National Offender Management Service – will abandon deal to advise Saudi Arabia on running of prisons

Lord Adonis to head up new body modelled on the independent Office for Budget Responsibility

Find out which civil servants and departmental teams are in the running for an award

Jeremy Heywood says "absolutely vital" digital team moving to "next phase" with departure of chief Mike Bracken

Civil service will get smaller, says Cabinet secretary — but number of departments will “probably” stay the same

Management consultants looking at "operating costs across the department and partner organisations", says business secretary, but none "working directly" on its response to the Spending Review

Latest report by the public accounts committee warns police could bear brunt of "cost shunting" by other departments, but Home Office says it is working on reforms to make the system more "fair, robust and transparent"

Major business lobby group sets out stall ahead of government-wide Spending Review – with shared services, digitisation, and payment-by-results top of the agenda

PCS and Prospect members at the Natural Environment Research Council take half-day action over 1% cap and progression pay move

PM highlights achievements of Whitehall's digital team as he argues government has "moral imperative" to "streamline" public services

New watchdog the Single Source Regulations Office seeks to overhaul MoD deals with single-source contractors

Care Quality Commission chief David Behan tells NHS Innovation Expo that public reassurance vital after data on patients attending sexual health treatment centre accidentally shared

Outgoing digital chief Mike Bracken cites "stresses and strains" of the job – but says Government as a Platform plans still being assessed

What’s life like at the sharp end of public services? A modern foreign languages teacher tells Sarah Aston about the pros and cons of changes to the schools system

Public and Commercial Services union makes "strong representations" to tax authority about "timescale and process" of 90-day talks, which department says may result in compulsory redundancies