Manufacturing industry is enjoying the healthiest spell of Business for almost 12 years despite interest rate increases and the strength of the pound, says the CBI. But the Office for National Statistics figures suggest the claimed productivity improvements may have been overstated. Read the rest of this article »

Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reported to Parliament today that, halfway into the three-year efficiency programme, government departments have reported £13.3 billion in annual efficiency savings, 62 per cent of the £21.5 billion target.

But departments  progress towards achieving their individual targets varies, indicating that some departments still have a lot more to deliver than others. Progress ranges from the Home Office and the Department for Work and Pensions reporting the achievement of more than 90 per cent of their efficiency targets by September 2006 to the Department for Education and Skills reporting only 28 per cent of its target. Read the rest of this article »