Conclusions and recommendations
Data quality
1. The
quality of data reported by government departments for the Sustainable
Development in Government Assessment has improved substantially
in recent years. Further improvement requires a formal process
of audit and verification. We recommend that the Government undertake
an assessment of the cost and feasibility of implementing a system
of external verification of the data submitted by departments.
(Paragraph 6)
Sustainable Development in Government Assessment
2007-08
SOGE Targets
2. The
Sustainable Development Commission has awarded Government four
stars (out of a possible five) in its rating of pan-government
performance against the Sustainable Operations on the Government
Estate targets; this represents an improvement of one star compared
to the 2006-07 reporting period. We welcome the progress that
government has made against its SOGE targets in a number of key
areas, including waste, water consumption and emissions from road
travel. Performance against a number of important targets has,
however, been poor. The Government must ensure that in the 2008-09
reporting year it is on track to meet all of its SOGE targets.
Where the Government is meeting its targets, it must not be complacent;
if progress against a given target is slowing, it must offer an
explanation. (Paragraph 9)
Mandated mechanisms
3. It
is completely unacceptable that central government departments
are failing to comply with mandatory requirements. A marked improvement
in the Government's performance against its targets for the use
of mandated mechanisms in the 2008-09 reporting year is needed.
(Paragraph 11)
Sustainable procurement
4. The
Government is in a position to exert a powerful influence on its
own suppliers and on the wider economy. Recognition of this potential
must result in a serious commitment to sustainable procurement
and decisive, radical action to ensure that the Government meets
and, where possible, exceeds its own targets on procurement. The
creation of the Centre for Expertise in Sustainable Procurement
is a step in the right direction; we hope to see solid evidence
of its effectiveness in the data reported during 2008-09. In particular,
we expect to see a significant increase in the number of departments
including clauses for Quick Wins or extended mandatory product
standards in all relevant contracts. (Paragraph 13)
Meeting the targets
Delivery plans
5. We
are unconvinced by the claim that the Government is on track to
exceed its 2010-11 target for the reduction of carbon emissions
from offices. It is not sufficient for it to base its projections
on unverified figures; delivery plans are meaningless if they
are not supported by evidence. We recommend that, in the next
iteration of its Delivery Plan, the Government set out in detail
the means by which it intends to meet this target and define what
it means by "carbon management". (Paragraph 18)
6. We welcome the
Government's commitment to revise and update its Delivery Plan
on a quarterly basis, and expect future versions of the plan to
be based on robust and verified data. Every department must produce
a credible, evidence-based plan of how it will make progress against
all of the SOGE targets. The plans must make clear how this activity
is resourced. (Paragraph 20)
Finance and investment
7. It
is not sufficient for cost/benefit analyses to draw on current
energy costs in calculating the savings that might result from
investment in measures to reduce carbon emissions. The Government
must assess precisely the future cost of not making significant
investment to reduce carbon emissions now. Without such an assessment,
it is impossible for government departments to compare accurately
the costs of options available to them. If the Government itself
is unable to accurately forecast the cost of compliance with its
own policies, it is difficult to understand how those in the wider
public sector and in the private sector can be expected to do
so. (Paragraph 24)
8. Investment based
on the best available information is crucial to the delivery of
any programme that aims to deliver sustainable operations. Many
of the changes needed to meet and exceed the SOGE targets require
an initial outlay that is greater than the "business as usual"
alternative. Such increased up-front costs are in many cases more
than compensated for by the savings that can be realised in the
longer-term. If the Government is to succeed in convincing the
wider world of this, it must be prepared not only to make the
necessary investment in sustainable operations, but also to make
the case for sustainability by publishing clear calculations of
the costs and benefits it entails. (Paragraph 26)
Carbon Reduction Commitment
9. The
update to the Government's Delivery Plan, to be published in summer
2009, must contain a detailed explanation of how departments will
participate in the Carbon Reduction Commitment, and of how this
participation will interact with the SOGE Framework. It must also
explain how the Government intends to minimise the risk of large
transfers of public money to the private sector as a result of
poor performance by government departments. We also expect it
to contain an assessment of the possible financial implications,
both for central government and for the wider public sector, of
participation in the scheme. (Paragraph 30)
Reviewing the targets
Targets
10. A
revised SOGE Framework must provide targets that are challenging
enough to achieve the scale of change required to deliver sustainable
operations. They should reflect the level of the Government's
own ambition on sustainable development and climate change. The
revision of the framework must also address incoherencies in the
current system, and must produce targets that work together to
drive progress towards sustainable operations. (Paragraph 34)
Coverage
11. The
SOGE Framework must aim to cover the environmental impacts of
all government business. Targets for sustainable operations must
be applied as widely as possible, and the reporting of performance
against them must be made mandatory. It is not necessary for uniform
targets to be applied across the board; they may be tailored where
appropriate. We urge the Government to set out a detailed timetable
for the extension of the scope of the SOGE Framework and to develop
suitable mechanisms for the monitoring of performance against
the targets. We also recommend that the Government assess the
costs and benefits of extending the Framework. (Paragraph 36)
Credits and offsetting
12. Offsetting
is not a substitute for action to reduce emissions; all other
options must be exhausted before offsetting is considered. The
Government must show clearly how the Government Carbon Offsetting
Fund (GCOF) is being used and must provide assurance that options
for reducing emissions have priority. The use of GCOF must be
transitional and departmental delivery plans should show how emissions
that are currently offset will be reduced in future. The Government
should publish its estimates of the amount to be spent on offsetting
each year and the Chief Sustainability Officer should assess whether
this spending constitutes value for money. (Paragraph 40)
Governance and accountability
Variations in departmental performance
13. It
is perhaps inevitable that there should be variations in departmental
performance against the SOGE targets, but the scale of variation
recorded is evidence that something is wrong. It is vital that
the Centre of Expertise in Sustainable Procurement, overseen by
the Sustainable Procurement and Operations Board, provides centralised
co-ordination to ensure that all departments are maximising their
capacity to meet their SOGE targets. We urge the Government to
continue to work with the Sustainable Development Commission to
improve the ways in which best practice is shared between departments.
(Paragraph 43)
Executive Agencies
14. We
deplore the continuing failure of a significant portion of Executive
Agencies to report their performance against their Sustainable
Operations on the Government Estate targets. The ability of the
Centre of Expertise in Sustainable Procurement to ensure that
Executive Agencies report their performance will be an important
test of the effectiveness of the recent changes made to governance
arrangements. We see no reason why all Executive Agencies should
not report their performance against the SOGE targets for the
2008-09 period. We will be pursuing any compliance failure with
the relevant Chief Executive directly. (Paragraph 45)
Changes to governance structures
15. The
inclusion of sustainability goals in the personal objectives of
permanent secretaries was an important gesture. But it seems to
have remained no more than a gesture. There is little evidence
to suggest that this has had any effect on departments' efforts
to achieve sustainability. We intend to examine the performance
of permanent secretaries who do not meet their targets in 2008-09,
and invite them to explain their performance to us. (Paragraph
49)
Ministerial responsibility
16. A
meaningful commitment to the sustainability of government operations
must come from the highest level. If the question of sustainable
operations is to carry real weight within government, it is vital
that the Minister responsible shows active leadership. We expect
to see solid evidence of the Minister's commitment to this agenda
when we next inquire into this subject. We recommend that the
Minister responsible for this agenda should take a more active
role in the oversight of performance management by the Sustainable
Procurement and Operations Board. (Paragraph 51)
17. It is at ministerial
level that the link between policy and operations is forged. We
urge sustainable development ministers to work more closely together
to ensure that there is a coherent and co-ordinated approach to
sustainable development across government. The Government must
lead by example by putting sustainable development at the heart
of a consistent and effective approach to both policy and operations.
(Paragraph 54)
Conclusion
18. If
the Government is committed to sustainable development, it must
set itself tough and stretching targets that match the high level
of ambition of its own policies on sustainable development and
climate change. Evidence of performance against these targets
must be provided in the form of robust, verified data. But setting
targets is not enough: the Government must take radical action
to ensure that all government operations are making real progress
towards sustainability. It must develop a more coherent investment
strategy, based on an analysis of present and future costs, in
order to enable it to spend to save. (Paragraph 55)
19. To achieve this,
the Minister responsible must show strong leadership and take
an active role in performance management. There must be clear
lines of accountability so that underperformance can be managed
effectively. It must be clear who should be held to account if
performance in the 2008-09 reporting year is poor. But we also
need to know that that person has had not just responsibility
for sustainable operations, but also the means to make real changes
happen. (Paragraph 56)
| 
