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Select Committee · Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee

The role and status of the Prime Minister’s Office

Status: Closed Opened: 23 Sep 2020 Closed: 27 Sep 2021 4 recommendations 5 conclusions 1 report

The status of the Prime Minister’s Office (“Number 10”) is opaque. The gov.uk website description says “the office helps the Prime Minister to establish and deliver the government’s overall strategy and policy priorities, and to communicate the government’s policies to Parliament, the public and international audiences.” Nominally, it is a part of the Cabinet Office, … Show more

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Reports

1 report
Title HC No. Published Items Response
First Report - The role and status of the Prime Minister’s … HC 67 9 Jun 2021 9 Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

3 items
3 Conclusion First Report - The role and status of t… Rejected

The Office of the Prime Minister is nominally a business unit of the Cabinet Office.

The Office of the Prime Minister is nominally a business unit of the Cabinet Office. However, it currently it appears to operate with even less transparency than other Cabinet Office business units. The Cabinet Office Annual Report and Accounts do not include a narrative report on the Office of the … Read more

Government response AI summary
The government explains that narrative sections are not for all business units and that separating the Prime Minister's Office would be misleading due to its integrated relationship with the Cabinet, asserting the current approach is appropriate.
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4 Recommendation First Report - The role and status of t… Rejected

We do not consider the status of the Office of Prime Minister as a business...

We do not consider the status of the Office of Prime Minister as a business unit to be an accurate reflection of the role that it plays. Yet it currently operates with even less transparency that this status suggests. For so long as the Government maintains that it is a … Read more

Government response AI summary
The government rejects the recommendation to report on the Prime Minister's Office activities as it does for other business units. It argues that doing so would be misleading and difficult due to the historical and ongoing close relationship and overlapping responsibilities between the Prime Minister …
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5 Recommendation First Report - The role and status of t… Rejected

In its Single Departmental Plan, the objectives of supporting the Prime Minister should be disaggregated...

In its Single Departmental Plan, the objectives of supporting the Prime Minister should be disaggregated from the support provided to the Cabinet or the Government more generally.

Government response AI summary
The government rejects the recommendation, stating that disaggregating the Prime Minister's support from the Cabinet's would be misleading and difficult due to their historically close relationship and overlapping responsibilities. They explain that the Annual Report and Accounts do not cover all business units.
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Oral evidence sessions

2 sessions
Date Witnesses
10 Nov 2020 Fiona Hill CBE · Future Resilience Forum, Jonathan Powell, Polly Mackenzie, Prof Sir Geoff Mulgan CBE, Rt Hon Sir John Redwood MP View ↗
13 Oct 2020 Alex Thomas · Institute for Government, Dr Catherine Haddon, Dr Patrick Diamond View ↗

Who gave evidence

8 witnesses
WitnessOrganisationSessions
Alex Thomas · Programme Director Institute for Government 1
Dr Catherine Haddon — 1
Dr Patrick Diamond — 1
Fiona Hill CBE Future Resilience Forum 1
Jonathan Powell — 1
Polly Mackenzie — 1
Prof Sir Geoff Mulgan CBE — 1
Rt Hon Sir John Redwood MP — 1