Here’s proof that private sector involvement in public service is bad

Reblogged from Vox Political:

The most obvious example of the failure of outsourcing to the private sector that there is: Atos-run Work Capability Assessments have ruined the lives of thousands of people whose only crime was that their bodies don’t work the same way as Iain Duncan Smith’s. Another candidate for the picture would have been Unum, the company whose philosophies created the WCA in the first place.

Following on from yesterday’s exploration of the failures of the privatised utilities – and if there is time – today will hopefully see publication of a quartet of articles, each picking up a theme from the last.

We’ll start with the easiest. The False Economy blog has published a list of privatisation and private sector commissioning failures, magnifying a previous list by Barnet Unison. The list can be found on the False Economy website but is reproduced in full below.

If you have any doubt that it is a bad idea to employ private companies to carry out public duties in the UK, it is likely to be dispelled by the time you get to the end of the following:


Follow the links to see how badly these private sector companies have “delivered” services:

1. Jeremy Hunt: ‘completely normal’ for contractor to fail to deliver http://ning.it/OV8pPC

2. Winterbourne – Timeline: Winterbourne View abuse scandal http://ning.it/18tbEaf

3. Southwest One contract dispute cost council £5.9m http://ning.it/18tbHTs

4. Timeline: how G4S’s bungled Olympics security contract unfolded http://ning.it/1b4EnGP

5. G4S faces fraud investigation over tagging contracts http://ning.it/18tbNKJ

6. Private contractor fiddled data when reporting to NHS, says watchdog http://ning.it/1b4EwtN

7. Serco tagging scandal could hit sale of MoD agency contract – http://ning.it/1b4ExOp

8. MPs CALL FOR CAPITA CONTRACT TO BE AXED http://ning.it/1b4EHoV

9. BT overcharging Liverpool council by £10m a year, report claims http://ning.it/1b4EPoq

10. Southern Cross set to shut down and stop running homes – http://ning.it/1b4F0A1
and let’s also add:

11. ATOS – with employment and support allowance appeals up by 70% in recent figures. http://dpac.uk.net/2013/03/more-chaos-esa-appeals-up-by-70/

12. A special shoutout to ALS/Capita for the shambles made of the courts’ outsourced interpreting service http://www.guardian.co.uk/law/2013/feb/06/court-interpreting-services-privatisation-shambolic

13. A4e for multiple allegations of fraud and getting just 3.5% of referrals into long term jobs – below the minimum target set by the DWP. http://falseeconomy.org.uk/outsourcing/a4e

14. We’re saving this spot for companies involved with the development of Universal Credit. http://www.computerweekly.com/news/2240187478/Why-agile-development-failed-for-Universal-Credit