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22 November 2000
INVESTING IN OUR FUTURE
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Detailed plans for doubling net investment in Britains public services
over the next three years are published by Departments today.
The
23 new “Departmental Investment Strategies” set out how the Government
will deliver not just more capital spending, but better management
of projects, and better use of the assets Departments own.
The
Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Andrew Smith, said:
“This
Government is committed to reversing the legacy of under investment
in the nations infrastructure. Major increases in capital investment
are needed to deliver the continued improvements in health, education,
transport and housing we have targeted. That is why we are doubling
public sector net investment over the next three years.”
The
new strategies flesh out the headline spending plans announced by
the Chancellor in the Spending Review in July. These mean that in
three years time we will be spending:
- an extra £12 billion
a year on new investment across the public sector;
- an extra £3.9 billion
a year on investment in transport, a 150 per cent increase;
- £1.4 billion a
year more on NHS capital to improve hospitals and primary care;
- £1.6 billion a
year more on education and employment investment.
The
new Strategies are designed to show how:
- department’s investment
plans link to the policy outcomes and specific measurable targets
for improved services outlined in their Public Service Agreements;
- existing assets are
being managed and disposed of where they are not needed;
- new money is allocated
to high quality projects;
- systems and procedures
are being improved to deliver better value for money.
The
White Paper highlights the Governments determination to improve the
quality as well as the quantity of public investment by:
- requiring all departments
to publish and update their investment strategies;
- putting all large projects
through a rigorous process of scrutiny by the new Office of Government
Commerce;
- introducing modern commercial
accounting techniques in departments, including the requirement
for all departments to prepare a balance sheet;
- requiring departments
to recognise the full costs of the assets they hold;
- updating the list of
government assets, published for the first time in the National
Asset Register; and
- funding innovative capital
projects through the £2.5 billion Capital Modernisation Fund.
Notes for editors
1.
The White Paper Investing in the
Future: Departmental Investment Strategies: A Summary (Cm
4916) is published today by HM Treasury and is available on the Treasury's
website.
2.
Each main department is publishing its own Departmental Investment
Strategy. Links to these are available through the same page on the
Treasurys website.
3.
The Departmental Investment Strategies update those first published
by departments in April 1999.
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