200 billion worth of public projects - including the 2012 Olympics, Crossrail and ID cards - are under threat of going over budget because government departments do not have the right skills, the National Audit Office (NAO) has warned.

The NAO found only 44% of civil servants charged with owning one of the Treasury's ‘major projects' lacked sufficient commercial experience.
 
It found the largest skills gaps were in contract management, managing advisers, risk identification and risk management.
 
Chris Phillips, VP at global talent management specialist Taleo, said: "It is shocking to hear so many government projects are suffering either through a lack of visibility into available skills or an inability to optimally allocate these resources. Talent management tools are widely used by private organisations and could be bringing the same level of insight and flexibility to the public sector."