Government Communications claims £330m in savings through digital

'Every taxpayer penny counts,' says Alex Aikin

The government has saved £330m within its communications department in the last year by using more efficient digital communications, the Cabinet Office has claimed.

The Government Communications Profession has altered its processes to ensure "that every taxpayer penny counts," resulting in £330m in savings for the 2014 to 2015 period when compared with outgoings from 2009 to 2010.

Reforms were introduced in 2010 and as a result the total cost of planned communications in 2015 to 2016 is expected to be 50 per cent less than it was in 2009 to 2010.

Savings have been made as a result of the Government Communications Profession switching to no-cost digital channels for communication and "using resources from across departments to streamline our approach and remove duplication".

"In the past, taxpayers' money was too often spent on expensive and unnecessary marketing and advertising campaigns. We've put an end to that, and ensured that we track the implementation and effectiveness of everything we do," said executive director of government communications Alex Aiken.

"Today's figures are impressive, but we won't stand still," he continued.

"That's why we recently released our communications plan for the year ahead which commits us to delivering further value for taxpayer's money and a more skilled, effective and focused service than ever before," Aiken added.

Last year government chief technology officer Liam Maxwell claimed that the government saved more than £14bn on IT procurement and services over the last year compared to the cost of IT services in 2010.

However, despite claims about how IT and digital technologies are reforming how it works, government decision makers have little faith that Whitehall IT teams can transform the way government works, a report from Eduserv, a not-for-profit organisation and registered charity has suggested.