§ 83. Mr. David Howellasked the Minister for the Civil Service, whether he will report on the progress of the Standing Treasury Committee with the specific task of reviewing methods of control of public expenditure and costing among the 250,000 workers in Government service which was announced on 21st March, 1966.
§ Mrs. HartThe Committee has prompted the constituent Departments to review many aspects of their industrial activities, not only in respect of the control of expenditure. At present the Committee stands adjourned pending the report of the Committee under Sir John Mallabar announced by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister in reply to a Question from my hon. Friend the Member for Wythenshawe on 19th December, 1968.
Measures taken by Departments and approved by the Committee include a review of the whole range of management information in the Navy Department; the extension of automatic data processing systems to costing systems in the Dockyards, refit planning, analysis of machine tool usage, production control etc.; the introduction of new storage systems to secure greater efficiency in the issue of stores and reductions in the numbers of stores staff; the introduction by consultants, of costing and budgetary control systems in REME workshops and RAOC depots; a review of the incentive bonus schemes in use not only in the departments represented on the Committee but also in other departments; a review by the Treasury of the use of work study in a number of Departments.