British government savings top €1bn

London: The British government said it saved £1 billion (€1.14bn) on procurement of office goods and services in its first year in power and is aiming to triple that annual saving by 2015.

The estimated savings were achieved through tighter controls on spending implemented by Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude. They are set against a budget deficit of £139.4bn (€156.4bn) for the same financial year, which ended in March.

Maude said he hopes to save more in future by centralising procurement and opening government contracts up to smaller providers.