To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent steps he has taken to promote effective cross-departmental working.

Departments are responsible for spending money wisely and for delivering excellent public services, and they are already delivering substantial reform programmes within their delivery chains. However, in many areas departments are unable to secure maximum value for money, and unable to reform services in the most effective manner by working in isolation.

The Cabinet Office provides a cross-Government centre of expertise through the Efficiency and Reform Group, which was setup to work across departmental boundaries where this is the best way to tackle waste, improve efficiency and reform the way services are delivered.

A recent example is the £360 million saved across departments by centralising spend on common goods and services. We have also established Crown Commercial Representatives, who saved over £800 million last year by renegotiating deals with some of our largest suppliers on a cross-Government basis. We are also promoting centres of excellence in departments where others are best placed to lead for the Crown. This includes the Next Generation HR shared service which DWP are delivering, and the Government's ICT strategy where elements of the implementation programme are being led by different departments.