File on 4 Investigates Folgen

The Department of Health wants to slash £1.2 billion off the bill for hospital supplies -- everything from bandages and rubber gloves to operating tables and medical equipment.The planned savings form part of the £20 billion in NHS efficiency savings the Government has pledged to make by 2014. There's plenty of scope for savings. A recent survey found one Hospital Trust bought 177 different types of surgical gloves. Across the NHS, hospitals buy more than 1,700 different kinds of canula. Rationalising this medical shopping list could free-up £500 million a year for investment in patient care, the National Audit Office estimates.But can the increasingly complex NHS procurement system in England deliver the major savings the Government wants to see?Critics say Foundation Hospital Trusts increasingly make their own buying decisions, with little or no national co-ordination. Inside hospitals, managers tasked with purchasing millions of pounds worth of equipment often lack the authority or the support of their superiors to drive through savings. Meanwhile new private sector companies are moving in to take over the purchase and supply of NHS equipment. Will the Government's plans for a more devolved health service help or hinder the drive to save taxpayers' money. Jenny Cuffe investigates.Producer: Andy Denwood.

The criminal exploitation of the internet poses one of the biggest threats to UK national security. As organised crime gangs and terrorists use it to communicate and plan their activities, the police and security agencies are turning to hacking to conduct surveillance and gather intelligence. In the first of a new series, File on 4 looks at the covert techniques being used to get beyond the firewall of a suspect's PC. But are the tactics legal? One leading expert says the rules governing interception are inconsistent and on occasions, misinterpreted by the police.Reporter Stephen Grey also examines the way British companies are helping to proliferate this hi-tech snooping to countries with questionable human rights and which use it to monitor political opponents and dissidents. And, with the Ministry of Defence developing its defences against sophisticated international attacks how vulnerable is the UK to "cyber warfare". Why did a Chinese state telecommunications company briefly 'hijack' most of the world's internet traffic one day last year? Producer: David Lewis Reporter: Stephen Grey.

The Government's strategy to boost local enterprise in England began poorly. The Director of the CBI criticised it as 'a shambles' and Business Secretary Vince Cable admitted it was 'Maoist and chaotic'.Now 36 Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) have been established with the aim of supporting economic growth and innovation and encouraging a network of Enterprise Zones. But some experts remain sceptical. They claim that the policy has failed to put business interests first and that in some parts of the country it has been hijacked by local politicians. Others complain that areas of deprivation have been overlooked in favour of more affluent neighbours. There is also concern that the strategy is not implementing the government's policy of localism. Can LEPs deliver the economic fruits they promise? Or will some just fizzle out, as one insider fears? Gerry Northam reports.Producer: Ian Muir-Cochrane Editor: David Ross.