UK communications regulator Ofcom is the latest public body to announce it is looking for spending cuts, with market research one of the areas slated for review. Meanwhile another government body has relaunched an R&D grant scheme for small business, 'though with a reduced budget.
In a statement released on Friday the independent regulator said it must make a 22.5% real terms year-on-year reduction in its spending, reducing its budget for 2011/2012 to £115.8m from a planned £149.3m and an actual 2010-11 spend of £142.5m.
Ofcom regularly carries out research into the markets it regulates. This includes the Communications Market Report, an annual statistical survey of developments in the communications sector, and annual reports into consumer experience.
The savings will be achieved by a combination of a reduction in staff (the majority of the 170 redundancies have already been made) and a reduction in expenditure through greater strategic focus, streamlining of the decision-making process and enhancing organisational effectiveness. Among possible streamlining activities, Ofcom says it will be looking at:
All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.
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