The Chief Secretary at the Treasury, Stephen Byers, has announced 500 specific performance targets which the government promises to achieve for education, health and a range of other public services.

Stephen Byers wants departments to show what they achieve with their money

"For too long people have focused on how much money is spent on public services. It is now time to move on and consider the important issue - how the money is spent and what people get in return for their money," said Mr Byers.

Introducing a White Paper on Public Services for the Future, Mr Byers said that the "old days of throwing money at a problem had gone" and that the public deserved to see how extra spending improved services.

The White Paper introduces "public service agreements", which set out what will be achieved by government departments that received extra funds in the comprehensive spending review earlier this year.

For education, the government has committed itself to:

• reduce class sizes in the lower years of primary school
  
• increase the availability of nursery places for 3-year-olds
  
• increase the proportion of 11-year-olds achieving the expected levels of literacy from 63% to 80% by 2002
  
• increase the proportion of 11-year-olds achieving the expected levels of numeracy from 62% to 75% by 2002
  
• reduce truancies and exclusions by a third by 2002
  
• increase the proportion of 16-year-olds achieving at least one GCSE from 92% to 95% by 2002
  
• increase the proportion of 16-year-olds achieving five or more GCSEs grades A* to C from 45% to 50%

There are also promises to make more information from the Department for Education and Employment available electronically. At present 35% of documents and publications are published on the Internet, which the government now says will increase to 90% by 2002.

Mr Byers argued that this specifying of targets will help to clarify the work of government departments, so that an identifiable improvement in services can be seen to follow an increase in funding.

"Our approach is to ensure that the extra investment we are putting into public services achieves real improvements, that standards will be raised and the quality of services enhanced.