SNP’S £100 M IT FAILURE
Taxpayers foot ‘staggering’ bill as key projects go over budget
TAXPAYERS have been handed a bill of nearly £100million to bail out over-budget Scottish Government IT projects.
Major initiatives such as the new Scottish social security welfare agency and the disastrous Scotland’s Census have already racked up extra costs of £45million.
Several other projects have smashed their budget ceilings, sometimes years ahead of completion.
They include new IT systems for the Scottish Government’s payroll department, disclosure checks and public pensions.
It comes hard on the heels of the two new CalMac ferries, four years late and £150million over budget, and the roll-out of superfast broadband, six years behind schedule.
Scottish Tory finance and economy spokesman Liz Smith said: ‘Taxpayers have been landed with this staggering bill due to the incompetence at the heart of the SNP government.
‘There is a culture of waste within the SNP government and taxpayers are the ones who pay the price time and time again.
‘Ministers should urgently be up-front about the true costs of these projects and whether even more money will have to be shelled out to support IT infrastructure.’
The Scottish Government has 34 major IT projects under way with a total estimated cost of £932million. However, a progress report to MSPs on Holyrood’s public audit committee lays bare several recent slippages.
The dossier by director of internal audit and assurance Sharon Fairweather shows the project costs of devolved welfare agency Social Security Scotland (SSS) were estimated at £190million but now stand at £251million. They could rise further when a ‘refreshed business case’ is published this year.
One of the new devolved benefits being handed out by SSS – the Adult Disability Payment – is expected to trigger a tenfold increase in appeals. As a result, the Scottish Courts & Tribunals Service has had to commission a £5.5million case-handling system, though the cost has risen to £6.7million.
Scotland’s Census was to cost £117million, but the decision to delay it a year due to Covid added £21.6million to the bill. A further £6million has been called for because of the poor public response which meant the deadline for replies was extended.
A new administration system for the Scottish Public Pensions Agency, due to be delivered in 2026, was slated at £20million.
But the work was put out to tender and successful bids have added £9.1million.
An IT overhaul at Disclosure Scotland – which runs the Protection of Vulnerable Groups scheme – was estimated to cost £4million, but the bill has soared to £12.2million.
The Government’s merger of its human resources, payroll and finance departments was to be completed for £15million. Now the cost is £20million.
A £60million Digital Identity Service to let Scots prove their ID before using government services online was to start in 2028. But officials are having second thoughts about expecting public bodies to pay to use it, which means a potential £15million funding black hole.
In total, all these extra costs add up to £83.5million.
A further four projects – including a £18million booking system for CalMac ferries – have been delayed by several months.
And while a £3.1million mission to tighten security on schools online Glow network has been scrapped, the taxpayer still faces a bill for £260,000.
Joe Ventre, of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: ‘Taxpayers are all too familiar with bungled IT projects costing them a fortune. The Scottish Government must properly review these ventures at the outset to avoid digital disasters in the future.’
A Scottish Government spokesman said: ‘Major investment projects are subject to strict governance, monitoring and risk assessment processes.
‘It is to be expected that figures change, with indicative costs being updated as projects progress through the procurement process.
‘The Scottish Government continues to review its guidance to create a consistent approach among public bodies towards digital spend activities.’
‘Incompetence of SNP government’