Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 3
3
Accepted
Set out ESN building blocks plan by 2023, detailing prototyping, testing, and feedback incorporation.
Recommendation
The Department cannot yet prove to the emergency services that ESN will be good enough to replace Airwave. There is now a broad consensus among emergency services and the programme’s Independent Assurance Panel that ESN can work and that it remains the right approach. The Department believes that a widening market means ESN can now use off-the-shelf technology, but it is difficult for such a product to fully replicate Airwave, because Airwave is more complex than similar networks in other countries. Because each emergency service will decide for itself whether ESN can replace Airwave, the Department needs robust evidence from rigorous testing to prove that ESN fully meets all the needs of emergency services. Currently the Department does not have an agreed plan for when the different parts of ESN will be ready. Although emergency services are confident that the Department understands their needs, the Department’s past approach to testing ESN has not been good enough, and there is still much left to check, including that coverage is available everywhere it is needed, including in buildings. Recommendation 3: The Department should set out an outline plan for the main building blocks of ESN by the end of 2023, including when they will be prototyped, built, and tested in real world conditions, and which includes sufficient time for testing by emergency services, and allows feedback to be incorporated into the final version of ESN. This information should inform the main business case which we understand is due in the first quarter of 2024.
Government Response Summary
The government agrees and has developed a comprehensive control plan, covering all prototyping, testing, and user transition activities, with durations agreed with users. This plan is currently under user consultation and will be agreed before the end of 2023.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. includes elapsed time contingency. The control plan includes all elements of prototyping, and testing (including real-world testing), as well as the activities leading to user transition and Airwave shutdown. The durations of all phases that affect users (for example, formal ‘service acceptance’ and transition from Airwave) have been agreed with users. The control plan is now out for consultation with users, and it will be agreed before the end of 2023. The control plan will be turned into a full Programme Plan after the new User Services supplier is confirmed, and their delivery plan is known. In 2024, the programme will return to the Major Projects Review group with a business case, budget and clear plan, prior to the award of the User Services contract.