Britain's competitiveness is being undermined the inefficiency and wastefulness of the public sector, crumbling infrastructure, poor schools and universities, and too much bureaucracy, according to the annual competitiveness rankings produced by the World Economic Forum (WEF).
Although Britain climbed four places to 11th in the WEF's overall competitiveness rankings, it dropped ten places to 22nd in the list of countries that were successful in cutting waste.
The British government is more wasteful than those of United Arab Emirates, Botswana Malaysia, Ghana or Taiwan, the WEF found, undermining the competitiveness of the economy as a whole.
The figures come only months after the Chancellor, Gordon Brown, ordered an efficiency drive following the findings of Sir Peter Gershon’s report on improving the civil service.