In order to meet the requirement of the Comprehensive Spending Review, governments still need to cut 2.6bn from ICT, a survey of government finance officers has revealed.
Public sector finance bosses revealed, in the survey by VMWare, that more than half of public sector bodies have not even begun to implement required ICT cuts.
On average finance officers said they had implemented less than 9 per cent of planned technology cuts, meaning that £2.6bn of savings will need to be found over the next three years.
The study showed a “strong belief” from senior public servants that ICT was of strategic importance and that it could achieve cost cutting efforts and change the way public sector bodies deliver value.
“We’re seeing a major shift in the way IT is perceived in the public sector,” said Mark Newton, UK MD for VMware. “This research clearly shows that financial decision makers recognise that smart allocation of IT spending and resources can make a fundamental impact on their organisation. Rather than seeing it as a drain on resources, IT has the power to drive positive organisational change.”
Roger Bearpark, assistant head of ICT at Hillingdon Council said technology could be beneficial for public services.
“Our council administration saw the need for cuts long before the CSR was on the political agenda, but without question we are far better placed to deal with the need to find savings because of a virtualized infrastructure.
“Not only can we contribute to the overall cuts by keeping our own costs low, but we can also drive efficiencies throughout the rest of the organisation, and because we have such an agile infrastructure, we can make these changes quickly.”
