When a health problem arises six out of ten people don’ t know what to do about it.
This is the finding from a survey by Sheffield University of users of the telephone helpline NHS Direct. The survey found that 40% of people took less urgent action than they intended to do before calling the helpline. Most of these people were given advice on how to look after themselves at home. In 20% of cases callers were advised to take more urgent action than they had intended to do. 

Social Security Secretary Alistair Darling has set a target to reduce benefit fraud by 30%. As with all fraud it is difficulty to be precise about its true extent, but it is estimated that the savings on Income Support over a five year period will amount to one billion pounds. The new strategy Safeguarding Social Security sets out how the Benefits Agency and local authorities will use information technology and other measures to stem the flow of cash out of the system. 

Peters L
Public Administration and Development, (UK), Oct 1998 Vol 18 No 4
Start page: 381. No of pages: 6
Aims to complement existing research into the problems of downsizing the civil service in developing countries by putting the issue into the wider context of public sector management reform.