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Ministerial Foreword
In June 2004 we launched our Efficient Government Initiative, a central component of our reform agenda which aimed to tackle waste, bureaucracy and duplication in Scotland's public sector. Our plans for Efficient Government were set out in the document "Building a Better Scotland" which highlighted shared services as one of five key workstreams we wished to take forward and which was expected to play a significant role in delivering our long term target of £1.2bn annual cash savings by 2010/11.
This consultation document sets out our proposals for taking forward shared services across Scotland. It provides evidence to support our view that shared services can release significant efficiency savings for investment in front line services, but equally highlights the potential for shared services to drive up service quality and consistency.
Shared services can mean different things to different people and this document identifies our views on the areas that lend themselves to a shared approach and the different models for sharing that are available. Our aim is to develop shared business support functions and common business processes that are more independent of the traditional structures and boundaries that exist within the public sector. These will be more adaptable and better able to meet the needs of the joined up and customer focussed front line services that will be the focus of our debate on public service reform over the coming months and years.
We recognise that there are already many excellent shared service initiatives being taken forward across Scotland and we want to support and build on these examples. Equally, we recognise there is a key role for central government in developing a national strategic perspective on issues such as Information and Communications Technology that cross organisational and sectoral boundaries and are fundamental to achieving our longer term reform objectives.
In bringing forward our ideas we also recognise that these have significant implications for staff within the public sector and for the private sector companies that supply many of our services and systems. The consultation process will allow us to engage with all stakeholders and further refine our plans so that we can bring forward a final national strategy that will command the widest range of support. This is only the start of the process of engagement however, which we will continue as we move from planning into implementation.
I have been hugely encouraged with the appetite and enthusiasm for reform in my discussions with staff and leaders across the public sector over the last 12 months. I believe there is now a momentum behind change in how we run our public services in Scotland that will truly lead to the delivery of world class public services for the people of Scotland. Our shared services strategy will play a key role in this and I look forward to engaging in the discussion over the coming months.
Tom McCabe, MSP
Minister for Finance and Public Service Reform
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