| Summary
We have considered the Annual Report and Accounts of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister for 2005, which sets out the Department's strategic priorities, its performance against targets in the financial year 2004-05 and its expenditure for the same period.
While welcome improvements have been made to the format and structure of the Annual Report, further efforts are required to enable the reader to link the ODPM's resource allocations to its objectives. The way in which efficiency savings were reported made double counting possible: we found one instance where this had occurred. In future there must be no double counting at all. We have criticised the Department for presenting its achievements in an unduly favourable light.
Local government efficiency savings will play an important part in achievement of the ODPM's efficiency target. We found the scrutiny process for local authority efficiency statements to be unsatisfactory and we are concerned that authorities under pressure will be tempted to reduce services rather than striving for ever greater efficiency.
The ODPM is uniquely dependent upon other Government Departments to support delivery of much of its agenda. This is particularly the case in relation to the sustainable communities plan. We remain to be convinced that the ODPM has adequate mechanisms in place to ensure other Departments will enable achievement of its objectives.
The Department has recently published the results of a staff survey and a stakeholder review. These show some signs of the Department's progress in managing and communicating with its staff and stakeholders since its establishment in 2002. However, they also reveal areas where change is needed, particularly in relation to senior leadership and tackling unfair treatment and discrimination. We intend to examine these matters further in twelve months' time.
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