HC 505 - Economic Regulation of the Water Sector

HC 505 - Economic Regulation of the Water Sector PDF Author: Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Committee of Public Accounts
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 0215088190
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 17

Get Book Here

Book Description
The General Practice Extraction Service (GPES) is an IT system designed to allow NHS organisations to extract data from all GP practice computer systems in England. This data would be used to monitor quality, plan and pay for health services and help medical research. The National Audit Office conducted an investigation into the service following concerns raised during a financial audit of the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC). The investigation found that the project had been delayed and only one customer, NHS England, had so far received data from GPES. Mistakes in the original procurement and contract management contributed to losses of public funds, through asset write-offs and settlements with suppliers. However, the need for the service remains and further public expenditure is needed to improve GPES or replace it. This inquiry will examine the procurement and development of the GPES system, the total expected cost of the GPES programme, which increased from £14 million to £40 million during planning and procurement, and how the capability of GPES can be used to provide a suitable data extraction service in the future.

HC 505 - Economic Regulation of the Water Sector

HC 505 - Economic Regulation of the Water Sector PDF Author: Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Committee of Public Accounts
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 0215088190
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 17

Get Book Here

Book Description
The General Practice Extraction Service (GPES) is an IT system designed to allow NHS organisations to extract data from all GP practice computer systems in England. This data would be used to monitor quality, plan and pay for health services and help medical research. The National Audit Office conducted an investigation into the service following concerns raised during a financial audit of the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC). The investigation found that the project had been delayed and only one customer, NHS England, had so far received data from GPES. Mistakes in the original procurement and contract management contributed to losses of public funds, through asset write-offs and settlements with suppliers. However, the need for the service remains and further public expenditure is needed to improve GPES or replace it. This inquiry will examine the procurement and development of the GPES system, the total expected cost of the GPES programme, which increased from £14 million to £40 million during planning and procurement, and how the capability of GPES can be used to provide a suitable data extraction service in the future.

Economic Regulation of the Water Sector

Economic Regulation of the Water Sector PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781786040053
Category : Water-supply
Languages : en
Pages :

Get Book Here

Book Description


Competition and Economic Regulation in Water

Competition and Economic Regulation in Water PDF Author: T. Ballance
Publisher: IWA Publishing
ISBN: 1843390493
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 160

Get Book Here

Book Description
Competition and Economic Regulation in Water: The Future of the European Water Industry reviews the main developments in economic regulation and competition in the European water industry and considers ways in which economic regulation and competition should be further developed. The book focusses on the best means of regulating or introducing competition into the industry in light of its present structure. Competition and Regulation in Water: The Future of the European Water Industry concentrates on the water industry, however, many of the conclusions are equally applicable also to the wastewater industry. Contents Introduction Water industry fundamentals: the rationale for regulation and the scope for competition A framework for evaluating different models of water industry regulation England & Wales: private ownership and independent regulation France: competition for the market and contract-based regulation Germany: public-private partnerships and multi-sector utilities Developing water sector regulatory frameworks in less developed countries Appendix: The legislative framework for the water industry in England & Wales

Regulating Water and Sanitation for the Poor

Regulating Water and Sanitation for the Poor PDF Author: Richard Franceys
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1136558888
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 306

Get Book Here

Book Description
The aim of this book is to present the potential benefits as well as the challenges of introducing a more formal economic regulatory process into the urban water sector arena in lower-income countries. There is a particular focus upon the impact this may have on the poorest, the informal, slum and shanty dwellers of the rapidly growing cities. Economic regulation, usually introduced in the context of private operation of monopoly water supply, can deliver objectivity and transparency in the price-setting process for public as well as private providers. The book describes and analyses these issues through a consideration of ten country case studies. As a starting point, the current situation for the provision of water and sanitation services for the poorest through non-regulated public providers in India and Uganda is reviewed. Comparative chapters are then presented on Ghana, Philippines, Bolivia, Jordan, Zambia and Indonesia, all with varying degrees of private sector involvement and regulation. Finally the experiences of two richer countries are considered - Chile and England, countries with the longest experience of economic regulation and the 'most privatized' suppliers. In all cases there is a focus on the very necessary role of customer involvement in price-setting and service monitoring and on the role of alternative (private) service providers.

HC 564 - the Sale of Eurostar

HC 564 - the Sale of Eurostar PDF Author: Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Committee of Public Accounts
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 0215090799
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 21

Get Book Here

Book Description
In March 2015 HM Treasury agreed to sell its 40% stake in Eurostar for £585.1 million, almost double the valuations produced before the sale by both the government's project team and UBS its financial adviser. While some of this difference may be explained by the successful sale process and favourable market conditions, it is also further evidence of the government and its advisers undervaluing assets. We are also concerned about the seeming over-reliance by government on a small pool of costly advisers for asset sales. For example, UBS, the financial adviser for this transaction, was also involved in the sale of the Royal Mail and High Speed 1 (HS1). Eurostar also agreed, in a separate transaction, to redeem the government's preference share, providing a further £172 million for the taxpayer. The sale of the UK government's entire financial interest in Eurostar therefore generated proceeds of £757.1 million, significantly less than taxpayers' total financial investment in Eurostar which is estimated to have been some £3 billion. In October 2015, some two years later than expected, the Department for Transport published an evaluation of the economic impact and regeneration benefits for HS1. We are concerned that this delay has prevented the evaluation, which shows that the costs of HS1 far outweigh its quantified benefits, from being used to aid the scrutiny of other projects such as High Speed 2. Despite the results of its own evaluation, which it described as "world class", the Department maintains that there are further "wider wider benefits" from HS1 that it cannot yet value which make the investment worthwhile.

HC 788 - Corporate Tax Settlements

HC 788 - Corporate Tax Settlements PDF Author: Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Committee of Public Accounts
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 0215091205
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 21

Get Book Here

Book Description
A six year investigation by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has resulted in Google paying a further £130 million to settle its corporation tax liabilities over the last 10 years. This vindicates the previous Committee's concerns in 2012 and 2013 that Google did not appear to be paying the full tax it owed in the UK. However, in the absence of full transparency over the details of this settlement and how it was reached we cannot judge whether it is fair to taxpayers. The sum paid by Google seems disproportionately small when compared with the size of Google's business in the UK, reinforcing our concerns that the rules governing where corporation tax is paid by multinational companies do not produce a fair outcome. Google's stated desire for greater tax simplicity and transparency is at odds with the complex operational structure it has created which appears to be directed at minimising its tax liabilities. Google admits that this structure will not change as a result of this settlement.

HC 643 - e-Borders and Successor Programmes

HC 643 - e-Borders and Successor Programmes PDF Author: Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Committee of Public Accounts
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 0215091345
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 21

Get Book Here

Book Description
On current projections the Home Office's e-Borders programme and its successors will cost over a billion pounds, be delivered 8 years late and not provide the benefits expected for transport carriers and passengers. A major reason for this delay was the termination by the Department in 2010 of its e-Borders contract with Raytheon. This had required Raytheon to deliver its own solution to meet the Department's objectives to a fixed price and timescale which turned out to be unrealistic as government had detailed and evolving requirements, and wanted high assurance that the proposed solution would work. The Department was emphatic that our borders are secure. However, the Department needs to accept that its assertion that it checks 100% of passports is both imprecise and unrealistic due to the complexity of our border. It is now five years since the e-Borders contract was cancelled yet the capabilities delivered so far still fall short of what was originally envisaged. Since 2010 the Major Projects Authority has issued seven warnings about these programmes. The Department's complacency about progress to date increases our concerns about whether the programme will be completed by 2019 as the Department now promises, and whether tangible benefits for border security, transport carriers and passengers will result.

Guide to the Economic Regulation of the Water Industry

Guide to the Economic Regulation of the Water Industry PDF Author: Helen Stout
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781874823025
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

Get Book Here

Book Description


HC 601 - Universal Credit: Progress Update

HC 601 - Universal Credit: Progress Update PDF Author: Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Committee of Public Accounts
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 0215090926
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 25

Get Book Here

Book Description
We acknowledge that Universal Credit has stabilised and made progress since the previous Committee of Public Accounts first reported on the programme in 2013. However, there remains a long way to go. Implementation of Universal Credit so far has focussed mainly on the simplest cases and the Department for Work & Pensions has again delayed the programme. The completion date for the roll-out of its new digital service is six months later compared to when we looked at the programme only a year ago, and the Department now expects that Universal Credit will be fully operational in March 2021. The Office for Budget Responsibility forecasts that there will be a further six-month delay beyond the Department's latest planned end-date. We remain disappointed by the persistent lack of clarity and evasive responses by the Department to our inquiries, particularly about the extent and impact of delays. The Department's response to the previous Committee's recommendations in the February 2015 report Universal Credit: progress update do not convince us that it is committed to improving transparency about the programme's progress.

HC 600 - Reform of the Rail Franchising Programme

HC 600 - Reform of the Rail Franchising Programme PDF Author: Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Committee of Public Accounts
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 0215091353
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 21

Get Book Here

Book Description
The last time we discussed rail franchising was in 2012, in the wake of the collapsed competition for the InterCity West Coast franchise. We are encouraged that, since then, the Department for Transport has strengthened its capability to let franchises, but there are still gaps in its ability to then manage the contracts effectively. The Department's increased focus on the passenger experience is also welcome, but it is unclear when passengers themselves will actually see the benefits. Furthermore, the Department has not yet developed the partnerships with operators that are required to support innovation, improve efficiency and improve services for passengers. Successful rail franchising depends on strong interest from the market and effective competition but there are barriers to entry to the UK market and the possibility that current participants in the market may drop out. Any reduction to the current level of competition is a major risk to securing value for money for the taxpayer. Perhaps the biggest challenge facing the Department is to manage the complex interdependencies between passenger rail franchises, the infrastructure that train services run on and the introduction of new fleets of trains to the network. Uncertainty about infrastructure work has resulted in delays to franchise competitions and the Department will have to rely on potentially expensive changes to franchises during the life of contracts. The Department's role is to provide a strategic lead for the complex rail system but it has not yet shown that it has embraced this role. It needs to provide a coherent strategic vision and stronger leadership to ensure that the investment decisions it makes now do not result in increased costs in the long term.