The machine that runs Britain’s state needs an overhaul
Ministerial hostility and increased churn compound long-standing concerns about the civil service
In 2011 the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) decided to roll out a new GPS-enabled ankle tag for criminals, in the hope of reducing reoffending. The design included 900 bespoke requirements and was split between four contractors—a high-risk structure in which the MoJ had no experience. Officials and suppliers fell out; managers came and went; hazy assumptions went unchallenged. In 2022 the programme was canned at a cost of £98m.
This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “Repairing the Rolls-Royce”
Britain March 25th 2023
- The machine that runs Britain’s state needs an overhaul
- “Honest” Boris Johnson looks done for
- The race to succeed Nicola Sturgeon has plunged the SNP into turmoil
- Louise Casey says the Met is institutionally misogynistic
- The British government attempts to take on the NHS’s workforce problems
- Editing Roald Dahl for sensitivity was silly
From the March 25th 2023 edition
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