Why is government failing to deliver projects successfully?

Discussion paper

Projects are how government actually delivers many of its policies.  Expenditure on projects is a major component of public spending. In 2020, there were 125 projects in the Government’s Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP) with a whole life cost of almost £450 billion. Effective project management is therefore vital for any government to be able to affect change and achieve the benefits and impacts for society which it hopes to bring about, and a critical component of managing public money well. This paper offers an assessment of the factors underlying the current issues with project delivery in government.