News

Following the Chancellor’s announcement of £6.2bn of public sector spending cuts and as the Queen announces the legislative programme for the next 18 months, the BIFM’s corporate & public affairs director, Richard Byatt, identifies items in the coalition Government’s programme which will particularly impact facilities management.

The spending cuts announced today could prove a double-edged sword for facilities management. Cuts of £1.15bn in discretionary areas such as consultancy and travel; savings of £1.7bn from delaying and stopping contracts and projects; £170m to be saved through reductions in property costs - these will all affect public sector FMs and providers of services.

However, other savings may lead to business opportunities for the FM industry and career opportunities for facilities managers with the right skills and experience.

The Government published a concise document last week (The Coalition: our programme for government) setting out its plans under 31 headings, from banking to universities. The extracts below have particular relevance for FM in both private and public sectors - the full document can be found at http://programmeforgovernment.hmg.gov.uk/ or click the link below.

An important caveat appears on the final page of the document: "The deficit reduction programme takes precedence over any of the other measures in this agreement, and the speed of implementation of any measures that have a cost to the public finances will depend on decisions to be made in the Comprehensive Spending Review.

Business
We will review employment and workplace laws, for employers and employees, to ensure they maximise flexibility for both parties while protecting fairness and providing the competitive environment required for enterprise to thrive.

We will reinstate an Operating and Financial Review to ensure that directors’ social and environmental duties have to be covered in company reporting, and investigate further ways of improving corporate accountability and transparency.

Communities & local government
We will abolish the unelected Infrastructure Planning Commission and replace it with an efficient and democratically accountable system that provides a fast-track process for major infrastructure projects.

We will ban the use of powers in the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) by councils, unless they are signed off by a magistrate and required for stopping serious crime.

We will require continuous improvements to the energy efficiency of new housing. 

Culture, Olympics, media and sport
We will introduce measures to ensure the rapid roll-out of superfast broadband across the country.

Defence
We will aim to reduce Ministry of Defence running costs by at least 25%.

We will look at whether there is scope to refurbish Armed Forces’ accommodation from efficiencies within the Ministry of Defence.

Energy & climate change
We will seek to increase the target for energy from renewable sources, subject to the advice of the Climate Change Committee.

We will establish a full system of feed-in tariffs in electricity – as well as the maintenance of banded Renewables Obligation Certificates.

We will retain energy performance certificates while scrapping HIPs.

Through our ‘Green Deal’, we will encourage home energy efficiency improvements paid for by savings from energy bills. We will also take measures to improve energy efficiency in businesses and public sector buildings. We will reduce central government carbon emissions by 10% within 12 months.

Equalities
We will promote equal pay and take a range of measures to end discrimination in the workplace.

We will extend the right to request flexible working to all employees, consulting with business on how best to do so.

Government transparency
We will take steps to open up government procurement and reduce costs; and we will publish government ICT contracts online.

We will require full, online disclosure of all central government spending and contracts over £25,000.

We will create a new ‘right to data’ so that government-held datasets can be requested and used by the public, and then published on a regular basis.

We will require all councils to publish items of spending above £500, and to publish contracts and tender documents in full.

We will ensure that all data published by public bodies is published in an open and standardised format, so that it can be used easily and with minimal cost by third parties.

Social action
We will give public sector workers a new right to form employee-owned co-operatives and bid to take over the services they deliver. This will empower millions of public sector workers to become their own boss and help them to deliver better services.

Universities and further education
We will seek ways to support the creation of apprenticeships, internships, work pairings, and college and workplace training places as part of our wider programme to get Britain working.

'The Coalition: our programme for government'