The UK government's promise to outsource more IT contracts has got trade unions fuming.

Secretary of State for Business John Hutton promised a 'long-term commitment to open up public service markets' which means more outsourcing to private companies. But the Public and Commercial Services Union hit out at the promise, saying that it ignores a catalogue of failed outsourcing deals.

Mark Serwotka, general secretary of the Public and Commercial Services Union, which has held a series of strikes in recent years over pay and jobs in the civil service, said the government had got it wrong. He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme the overnment was 'obsessed' with opening up public services to the market, rather than asking what public services are for.

The government has also pledged to make the public sector bidding process fairer and simpler and promote public sector contracts at home and abroad. X 

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