Mr. Paul Quinn:

Perhaps I should intervene at this point. I am the newly appointed chief procurement officer and I joined the Civil Service at the end of January. I am responsible for putting in place the new office for government procurement. What Ms McGrath has articulated is fairly typical to both Government and private procurement in respect of the challenge of measuring benefits. This reflects a natural evolution in the approaches and methodologies used for measurement. It does not discredit previous measurements but recognises that as better processes and systems are put in place, the accuracy with which one can measure savings will improve. We are currently dealing with a significant number of contracting entities which have put in place and implemented the various frameworks. They may implement these frameworks at different times, however, leading to a degree of uncertainty as to when those savings will arise. We will standardise the methodologies and build on the work undertaken by the NPS under the umbrella of the OPW in improving those measures and moving towards a more robust methodology for making savings. As we roll out the new office towards the end of this year we will improve the methodologies for capturing those savings, but we have to be clear that while our systems capabilities remain poor and will require investment in the coming years, it is only when those systems are put in place that we will significantly improve the accuracy of our measurements. To some degree we will continue to rely on estimates. In terms of the benefits, these estimates will be produced in a clearly defined and auditable manner that will lend credibility to them but there will be a journey in improving our reporting.