1.24 The estimated £4 billion annual savings in the cost of back office operations, achievable after three years, should be taken into account when departmental spending settlements are made. Some of the estimated savings will already be underway or planned as part of the current spending review period, but there is considerable scope to go further. Exceptions should be made for those departments which can demonstrate, using the audit agencies' value for money indicators, that they and the organisations within their delivery chains are already operating above public sector median performance across the range of back office operations.
| Recommendation 1.3: The Government should take into account the estimated £4 billion annual savings in the cost of back office operations when determining departmental settlements, taking note of savings already made where appropriate. |