Noble intentions, but can government IT strategy deliver its shared services vision?

摘要

In the Cabinet Office at Admiralty Arch in London, on 2 November, John Hutton, then a Cabinet Office minister, parried questions from journalists about the publication of the government's new IT strategy. One question was whether there would be improved oversight by parliament of any high-risk IT projects that arise from implementation of the strategy. The questioner pointed out to Hutton and his colleague e-gov-ernment minister Jim Murphy that public spending watchdog the National Audit Office and the Public Accounts Committee investigate fewer than 1% of high-and medium-risk IT-related programmes in the public sector. Hutton replied, "The more public scrutiny the better." But he said there were no specific plans for greater openness: that was a matter for parliament.