1.1 In this part of the report we describe the Department's fixed telecommunications and assess the extent to which the scope of the project and the length of the contract had an impact on value for money.
1.2 We found that the Department scoped the project in a way that may not have maximised the potential benefits and that they did not fully take into account the implications of changing the project to a privately financed deal during the competition. We also found that, although the Department chose a ten year contract period which can pose risks to value for money in a fast changing sector, they sought to address those risks.