The National Audit Office has called for changes to the way the public sector procures construction work to prevent the waste of more than £2bn of public money.

The NAO said that government departments must:

  • use payment methods that avoid prolonged retentions
  • provide greater certainty of workflow
  • use group project insurance
  • employ integrated teams
  • develop project management expertise
  • base design decisions on whole-life costs
  • follow sustainability action plans
  • use appropriate procurement strategies
  • use the Office of Government Commerce to establish a panel of government departments to coordinate programmes.

The second report on public sector procurement said the government was becoming a better client. It said 55% of projects were now completed to budget compared with 25% in 1999.

Source

Building Sustainable Design