There are systemic reasons for this but one of the key things is that government is not business and the considerations of what is value for money is very opaque in government. What is the briefing note to the minister worth? How do you protect value for taxpayers without having sometimes onerous requirements for public procurement. We like to deride government red tape and some of the time that's totally valid, but the main reason why government is inflexible and weighty is in many cases a response to taxpayer demands.
Is government pareto optimal? No. But often there are good reasons that taxpayers place on it that make it less nimble.
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