Source · Select Committees · Treasury Committee
Recommendation 2
2
Accepted
Paragraph: 24
Although witnesses were generally in agreement with the broad aims and priorities in the Plan...
Conclusion
Although witnesses were generally in agreement with the broad aims and priorities in the Plan for Growth, there was some dissatisfaction in both written and oral evidence with other aspects. It was suggested that there was a lack of detail and a lack of collaboration with businesses and regional bodies, and that there was no overall strategic vision of what the UK’s economic problems were, how they should be prioritised, and what policies and interventions were therefore effective. It is not clear to us how the Plan for Growth offered an advance on the Industrial Strategy.
Government Response Summary
The government states that the Plan for Growth is an overarching framework which helps to support a whole-Government approach to delivering long-term growth, and outlines processes already in place.
Paragraph Reference:
24
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
This section is addressing recommendations in paragraph 44 and 45 on making the Plan for Growth a successor to the Industrial Strategy, coordinating growth strategy across government, taking feedback and monitoring results to measure success. The Plan for Growth, while led by HM Treasury, is an overarching framework which helps to support a whole-Government approach to delivering long-term growth. The Plan for Growth is supported by a family of strategies, such as the ‘National Infrastructure Strategy’, ‘Skills for Jobs’ and the ‘Innovation Strategy’, each led by respective lead government departments. Outcome Delivery Plans (ODP) are the primary way in which departments’ progress against their core policy objectives and outcomes is measured, including where they are responsible for delivering elements of the Plan for Growth. There are measures across each strategic objective outlined in the Plan for Growth, including boosting connectivity, unleashing innovation and closing the regional attainment gap. Departments are required to report their progress to Cabinet Office and HM Treasury on a quarterly basis. These outcome focused metrics are discussed by departments and their corresponding HM Treasury spending teams and factor into discussions on funding settlement decisions. In addition, projects which are part of the Government Major Projects Portfolio–due to their value, significance, or novel nature–are subject to a regular monitoring regime involving the Infrastructure and Projects Authority, Cabinet Office and HM Treasury. This follows and supplements the usual HM Treasury process for scrutinising proposals, including the Treasury Approval Panels and spending control processes.