South Wales Evening Post - 05 October 2007
Trade unions at Swansea Council are demanding answers to what they have dubbed the multi-million pound eGovernment scandal.
Hitting out at the council's new £83 million IT system, they urged the authority to call in the Auditor General to intervene and "expose the many questions that have yet to be answered".
Swansea Council bosses branded many of the union's claims inaccurate, but accepted lessons should be learned for the future.
However, speaking on behalf of the joint trade unions, a Unison regional organiser said the matter should not be left buried under council bureaucracy.
"We are calling on all councillors to demand the Auditor General intervene.
"We are determined not to let this go until all aspects of this scandal have been revealed.
"The unions claimed there was a lack of proper scrutiny by elected councillors prior to the authority going ahead with the scheme, supplied by city IT firm Capgemini.
In a critical report, submitted to the council's eGovernment scrutiny board, they also claim no clear evidence was made public about how £28 million of the cost could be met through efficiency savings.
The unions also suggest the scheme went ahead without evidence to satisfy the Assembly's Best Value regulations. They say privatising the council's IT services would, in fact, cost £1 million extra per year.
The decision to proceed with the project was also blasted for showing "the lack of accountability of the cabinet system".
But council cabinet member for top performance and eGovernment, Mary Jones hit back, saying: "The unions' evidence to the scrutiny board contains a number of serious inaccuracies not supported by the evidence of the fully independent review by PricewaterhouseCoopers, carried out on behalf of the Wales Audit Office.
"What is needed now is for positive action to be taken in respect of the recommendations coming out of reviews carried out by PWC and by the scrutiny board to ensure that important lessons are learned for the future."
£900,000 IT SAVINGS SHORTFALL
South Wales Evening Post - 3.10.2007
Swansea Council's flagship new £83 million IT system will fall £900,000 short of expected savings in the current year.
The figure is revealed in a report to today's Performance Scrutiny Board.
It says the authority's eGovernment programme, which was supplied by Swansea IT firm Capgemini, will produce a shortfall of almost £1 million.
There could also be a "delay in fully implementing new systems".
The report adds: "Initial problems with the new systems have now been resolved to enable delivery of some benefits later in the year.
"Negotiations are continuing with the contractor in respect of the completion of payroll and other aspects of the programme."
A detailed status report, including any financial implications, will be presented to cabinet later in the year, councillors are being promised.
A Swansea Council spokesman said officers were "working closely with Capgemini to address the issues".
The deal agreed with Capgemini in January 2006 was heralded as a moneysaving and service- improving achievement.
The scheme was recently reported to be saving the authority £19 million less than hoped over the next 10 years.
Cabinet member for top performance and eGovernment, Councillor Mary Jones, said at the time: "The final benefits position will not be confirmed until Spring 2008."
A Swansea Council spokesman said: "The quarterly performance and financial monitoring report is a routine report designed to keep members informed of progress on financial matters."
It had been originally hoped that the new IT system would save the authority some £26 million over its 10-year contract.
Swansea Council's flagship new £83 million IT system will fall £900,000 short of expected savings in the current year.
The figure is revealed in a report to today's Performance Scrutiny Board.
It says the authority's eGovernment programme, which was supplied by Swansea IT firm Capgemini, will produce a shortfall of almost £1 million.
There could also be a "delay in fully implementing new systems".
The report adds: "Initial problems with the new systems have now been resolved to enable delivery of some benefits later in the year.
"Negotiations are continuing with the contractor in respect of the completion of payroll and other aspects of the programme."
A detailed status report, including any financial implications, will be presented to cabinet later in the year, councillors are being promised.
A Swansea Council spokesman said officers were "working closely with Capgemini to address the issues".
The deal agreed with Capgemini in January 2006 was heralded as a moneysaving and service- improving achievement.
The scheme was recently reported to be saving the authority £19 million less than hoped over the next 10 years.
Cabinet member for top performance and eGovernment, Councillor Mary Jones, said at the time: "The final benefits position will not be confirmed until Spring 2008."
A Swansea Council spokesman said: "The quarterly performance and financial monitoring report is a routine report designed to keep members informed of progress on financial matters."
It had been originally hoped that the new IT system would save the authority some £26 million over its 10-year contract.
