Swansea City Council has been criticised for bungling an £83m deal with IT firm Capgemini. A report by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) said the e-government contract to streamline services and save £17.3m would actually end up costing the council an extra £2.5m over the next 10 years. The report also criticises the authority for not looking at alternatives or checking the proposed savings from the bidders. Senior council staff had concerns about the contract, according to the report, which were not passed on to councillors. The lack of a call centre in the first phase of the programme was also criticised. ‘A fuller appraisal of all alternative options should have been undertaken when it became apparent that the programme was not affordable,' the report states. Council chief executive, Paul Smith, said: ‘The PWC report bears out the concerns that were expressed earlier and, from my limited understanding of the history to this programme, I am generally happy to accept its findings, although it is clear that further work is needed to fully understand the issues of responsibility, how the lessons can be used, and any mitigating factors.'
