"IT bungles: appalling and unacceptable"
The UK's Child Support Agency (CSA) has had a long history of major IT and management problems, as described in Computer Weekly.
Now, politician Danny Alexander has jumped into the fray with a few choice words describing the CSA:
The massive IT failures that have dogged the CSA are appalling and unacceptable. With so many glitches it is easy to see why thousands of families have been failed by this agency.
The CSA is riddled with incompetence and long ago lost public confidence. If we are to ever solve the issue of child support we need radical reform, not a simple re-badging of this failing agency.
Today we have also heard that the CSA’s annual report has been delayed until October. After these latest revelations about IT bungles, it seems inevitable that we can expect more mistakes to be revealed after the summer.
Aside from the chest-thumping, political grandstanding tone of his comments, Danny makes some good points.
The UK has had more than its share of serious, high-profile government project failures, such as the enormous NHS meltdown, which has been called the greatest IT disaster in history.
Stay tuned, as more on this is certain to come.