Cracking the code, by Dick Sorabji (PF 25/1/08)

New PSAs designed around people and projects, not departments. Cabinet committees reorganised to be aligned with the PSAs, with chairs to resolve conflicts. Evidence of more relational approach – structures to facilitate interaction and cooperation.

Burnham defends new PSAs as ‘a genuine reduction in targets’ (PF 26/10/07)

Observation that the 30 new PSAs plus the 103 departmental strategy objectives comes to a total larger than the current 110 PSAs.

Doing the maths, by Joseph McHugh (PF 5/10/07)

Article on October CSR. Use of hard financial targets e.g. Gershon efficiency savings. Given sharper edge by the harsher financial settlement that public services received from this CSR.

Also, move to smaller number of ‘joined up’ PSA targets, cutting across issues.

Public sector targets to be scrapped (GU 18/7/07)

Reduction in PSAs from over 100 to 30. Change to most depending on local decisions by councils and NHS bodies, rather than top-down targets. Evidence of shift to more relational model?

Performance anxiety, by Colin Talbot and Carole Johnson (PF 12/1/07)

Problems with PSAs:

1. Data quality – many departments do not have systems in place which are capable of accurately monitoring their PSA targets.

2. Accountability – the goal is to make public services more accountable, but it is questionable whether this has happened. Does anyone pay attention to the results? Select committees are not making great use of them.

3. What do they mean? Where do the targets come from? E.g. why 50% participation target for higher education?

4. Lack of resources to analyse the data.

Intention: Transactional – funding in exchange for performance.