The Government has squandered £1.5 billion on information technology projects since coming to power, according to a damning report to be published tomorrow.

The figure is the total cost of cancelled or over-budget schemes over the last six years, according to the survey published in the trade magazine Computing. That represents a 50% increase in wasted cash since the last Computing survey two years ago.

However, a leaked report shows plans are in place to change the way Government departments manage their technology programmes and cut the number of Whitehall IT disasters, according to the magazine.

The figures come after Treasury minister Paul Boateng said last week that his department did not know how much has been wasted since Labour came to power.

In response to a written question from Labour MP Derek Wyatt, Mr Boateng said: "The information requested is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost."

High-profile disasters contributing to the £1.5 billion total include the £698 million wasted on the cancelled Pathway project to develop smartcards for benefits payments and the £134 million overspend on the magistrates' courts' Libra system identified by the National Audit Office last year.

Mr Wyatt told Computing: "In business no group of shareholders would stomach the losses, over-runs and even pretty poor software that successive Governments have made.

"The opportunity cost value is hundreds of small new hospitals and schools."

The magazine's estimates for Government IT projects that have run into problems since 1997 are:

-- National Air Traffic Services - £180 million 1997-2002: Updated systems for Swanwick control centre were delayed and over budget

-- Pathway - £698 million 1998/99: Smartcards for benefits payments - project cancelled

-- Passport Agency - £12.6 million 1999: Cost of dealing with the backlog of passport applications caused by the project

-- Prison Service - £8 million 1999: Home Office drew up plans to overhaul prisons IT, and then scrapped them

-- Immigration and Nationality Directorate - £77 million 2001: Project cancelled because the system was over-complex

-- National Insurance Recording System 2 - £40.4 million 2001: Delays caused by problem implementation added to operating costs

-- Probation Service - Crams £118 million 2001: Work on the system was suspended after costs came in 70% higher than planned

-- Child Support Agency - £50 million 2001/02: Overspend due to changes to the system

-- Individual Learning Accounts - £66.9 million 2001/02: Flagship training scheme - project cancelled amid accusations of fraud

-- Libra - £134 million 2002: Plan to link magistrates' courts ultimately re-negotiated

-- Defence Logistics Organisation £120 million 2002: Armed forces asset management project put on hold due to pressure on resources

TOTAL £1,504.9 million