George Osborne has written to civil servants and other public sector workers asking them for ideas on how to deliver services more efficiently and cut government spending by £20bn.
The chancellor – who carried out the same exercise in 2010 – is inviting workers to participate in a survey to find ideas on how to save money ahead of November's government-wide spending review.
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In his letter, Osborne said: “You know better than most where we can take the next steps. You know first-hand where things are working well on the frontline of public services, but also where the waste is and where we can provide better services for less money.”
Public sector workers in the last parliament helped cut costs by stopping the distribution of plastic national insurance number cards and encouraging closer links between health and social care, Osborne said.
“So today we are inviting you to share with us your ideas for how to get more for less. If you think there is a better way to do things, we want to know,” he added.