An interim report highlighted the strengths and weaknesses of the system by which Parliament scrutinized government finances.
Source: Alex Brazier and Vidya Ram, Inside the Counting House: A discussion paper on Parliamentary scrutiny of government finance, Hansard Society (020 7955 7459)
Links: Hansard Society press release
Date: 2005-Dec
In 2004, 65 per cent of people employed in the public sector were women, compared with 41 per cent of those employed in the private sector. The public sector workforce was older than the private sector workforce: in 2004, 72 per cent of public sector workers were aged 35 and over, compared with 62 per cent of private sector workers. In 2004, 30 per cent of public sector workers worked part-time, compared with 24 per cent of the private sector workforce.
Source: Daniel Heap, 'Characteristics of people employed in the public sector', Labour Market Trends, December 2005, Office for National Statistics, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Article
Date: 2005-Dec
Public sector employment was 5,846,000 (20.4 per cent of all in employment) in June 2005, 680,000 (13.2 per cent) higher than in June 1998. The largest increases were in health and social work (up by 300,000) and education (up 224,000).
Source: Stephen Hicks, 'Trends in public sector employment': Subtitle, Labour Market Trends, December 2005, Office for National Statistics, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Article
Date: 2005-Dec
The government published a report which examined how the introduction of accruals accounting across all public sector bodies supported delivery of improved financial management.
Source: Delivering the Benefits of Accruals Accounting for the Whole Public Sector, HM Treasury (020 7270 4558)
Links: Report
Date: 2005-Dec
The government published new estimates of financial year outturns for some key public expenditure series up to 2004-05, including total managed expenditure (by budgetary category), and total expenditure on services (by function).
Source: Press release 5 December 2005, HM Treasury (020 7270 4558)
Links: HMT press release
Date: 2005-Dec
A new report from the Office for National Statistics, the first in an annual series, analyzed trends in public sector employment. Public sector employment as a proportion of total employment was 20.4 per cent in June 2005: this was below the June 1992 figure of 23.1 per cent, but above the low point of 19.2 per cent in June 1999.
Source: Daniel Heap, Stephen Hicks, Donna Livesey and Annette Walling, Public Sector Employment Trends 2005, Office for National Statistics (0845 601 3034)
Links: Report (pdf) | ONS press release (pdf)
Date: 2005-Oct
The Prime Minister said that he expected the 2006 spending review to lead to a significant shift in the government's spending priorities.
Source: Speech by Tony Blair MP (Prime Minister), 27 September 2005
Links: Text of speech
Date: 2005-Sep
The government announced that it would conduct a second comprehensive spending review in 2007, a year later than previously expected (the first was in 1997). The review would examine the key long-term trends and challenges that would shape the following decade, and assess how public services would need to respond.
Source: House of Commons Hansard, Written Ministerial Statement 19 July 2005, columns 54-56WS, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Hansard | Guardian report
Date: 2005-Jul
A government report said that the current economic cycle had begun in 1997, and not 1999 as it had originally thought. The effect of this, under the government's 'golden rule' for balancing public funds over the cycle, was to increase net revenues by ?10 billion.
Source: Evidence on the UK Economic Cycle, HM Treasury (020 7270 4558)
Links: Report (pdf) | CBI press release | Guardian report
Date: 2005-Jul
The official statistics watchdog published a report on revisions to public sector finances data in respect of road network depreciation.
Source: Revisions to Public Sector Finances: Estimates of Depreciation for the Road Network, Report 25, Statistics Commission (020 7273 8008)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2005-Jun
An article set out estimates for public sector employment for the period from June 1991 to March 2004. It also outlined work undertaken to improve the quality of these estimates. There had been steady growth in public sector employment since 1998, and in the first quarter of 2004 it was up 583,000 in total. In the year to March 2004 public sector employment increased by 146,000. Over 80 per cent of the increase since 1998 had been in the health and education sectors.
Source: Stephen Hicks and Craig Lindsay, 'Public sector employment', Labour Market Trends, April 2005, Office for National Statistics, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Article (pdf)
Date: 2005-Apr
A briefing note said that public spending on the National Health Service, transport, and education had increased much faster since Labour came to power than it did during the Conservatives 18 years in office.
Source: Carl Emmerson and Christine Frayne, Public Spending, Election Briefing Note 2, Institute for Fiscal Studies (web publication only)
Links: Briefing Note (pdf)
Date: 2005-Apr
A briefing note said that, whichever party won the 2005 general election, the tax burden was likely to be higher at the end of the next parliament than at the end of the latest one.
Source: Robert Chote, Carl Emmerson and Christine Frayne, The Public Finances, Election Briefing Note 3, Institute for Fiscal Studies (web publication only)
Links: Briefing Note (pdf) | Guardian report (1) | Guardian report (2)
Date: 2005-Apr
The 2005 edition of Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses was published. It provided a compendium of statistical data on public expenditure, covering both outturns and spending plans.
Source: Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses 2005, Cm 6521, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report (pdf) | HMT press release
Date: 2005-Apr
The Office for National Statistics reported progress on its work to improve the quality of public sector employment data. It also provided new estimates for the period 1991-2004.
Source: Stephen Hicks, Craig Lindsay, Donna Livesey, Nick Barford and Richard Williams, Public Sector Employment, Office for National Statistics (0845 601 3034)
Links: Report (pdf) | ONS press release (pdf)
Date: 2005-Mar
The Office for National Statistics said that it had examined the use in public sector finance statistics of repair and maintenance expenditure on roads by government, and it had found that - since 1998-99 - it had incorrectly used a combination of two approaches for recording road maintenance expenditure. Amendments were needed to official data which would involve a reduction in estimated current spending, and an increase in investment spending.
Source: Press release 28 February 2005, Office for National Statistics (0845 601 3034)
Links: ONS press release (pdf) | Guardian report
Date: 2005-Feb
The Scottish Executive published a plan for greater investment in Scotland's physical infrastructure, including education, health, and sport and recreation facilities.
Source: Building a Better Scotland: Infrastructure investment plan - Investing in the future of Scotland, Scottish Executive (0131 556 8400)
Links: Report
Date: 2005-Feb
At the end of December 2004 public sector net debt outstanding was 417 billion, equivalent to 34.9 per cent of gross domestic product (up from 33.2 per cent a year earlier).
Source: Public Sector Finances: December 2004, Office for National Statistics (0845 601 3034) and HM Treasury Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2005-Jan
The opposition Conservative party set out its alternative public spending plans for the period 2005-2008, based on a review by David James. They said that they would be able to cut public spending by over 30 billion through efficiency gains - twice the savings identified by the government as feasible. Most spending programmes would be preserved, but significant tax cuts would be possible with the savings.
Source: Better Public Services, Better Value: Conservative spending plans, 2005-2008, Conservative Party (020 7222 9000)
Links: Report (pdf) | James report (pdf) | NHS Confed press release | PCS press release | Guardian report (1) | Guardian report (2)
Date: 2005-Jan
A discussion paper assessed the degree of uncertainty in fiscal projections caused by demographic uncertainty. The budget deficit was expected to settle at about 4 per cent of national income: but by 2028 there was a 50 per cent chance that it could be outside a range of 3-5 per cent.
Source: James Sefton and Martin Weale, Fiscal Implications of Demographic Uncertainty for the United Kingdom, Discussion Paper 250, National Institute for Economic and Social Research (020 7654 1901)
Links: Discussion paper (pdf) | NIESR press release (pdf)
Date: 2005-Jan