Recommendations & Conclusions
8 items
2
Recommendation
Fifty-Sixth Report - Supporting investm…
Acknowledged
The Department focuses more on securing investment deals in the short term, rather than understanding the long-term economic benefits from investment. Inward investment can support economic growth and local economies by developing new infrastructure and skills, creating jobs and by developing robust supply chains, and the Department’s analysis suggests that …
Government response. The government agrees with the recommendation and acknowledges challenges in accurately estimating economic impact and evaluating performance due to missing data. It states it will seek to improve data quality and ways of working in this area.
HM Treasury
1
Conclusion
Fifty-Sixth Report - Supporting investm…
Acknowledged
On the basis of a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General, we took evidence from the Department for Business and Trade and its Office for Investment about supporting investment into the UK.1 In February 2023, the government created the Department for Business and Trade (the Department), bringing together the …
Government response. The government agreed, outlining its strategic ambitions and existing use of official statistics for measuring investment outcomes. It committed to exploring the feasibility of expanding investor surveys, including those who abandoned plans, and will define a timeframe for this within …
HM Treasury
10
Conclusion
Fifty-Sixth Report - Supporting investm…
Acknowledged
The Department records potential long-term benefits of inward investment such as the salary level of the jobs expected to be created and export potential, and reports its forecasts of the number of new and safeguarded jobs that are expected to be created or retained over the following three years as …
Government response. The government agrees with the observation and acknowledges difficulties with data quality in estimating economic benefits and second-order impacts. It commits to seeking improvements in its ways of working to improve data quality in this area.
HM Treasury
11
Conclusion
Fifty-Sixth Report - Supporting investm…
Acknowledged
In some cases, there may be fewer long-term benefits from inward investment than originally forecast if, for example, foreign investors choose to move parts of their operations, jobs and skilled UK staff overseas.24 We heard about the cases of Japanese-owned chip designer Arm, and Irish buildings materials group CRH, who …
Government response. The government agrees with the observation that long-term benefits may be fewer than forecast. It states its focus is on landing, retaining, and expanding UK presence, and commits to seeking improvements in data quality for estimating economic impact.
HM Treasury
12
Conclusion
Fifty-Sixth Report - Supporting investm…
Acknowledged
The Department does not routinely monitor what outcomes have been achieved, whether they are higher or lower than forecast, or whether investments have led to any economic disbenefits.27 We asked the Department how many of the jobs it forecasts at the outset are still there five years later. The Department …
Government response. The government agrees with the observation that long-term outcomes are not routinely monitored. It acknowledges issues with data quality in estimating economic benefits and commits to seeking improvements in its ways of working in this area.
HM Treasury
23
Conclusion
Fifty-Sixth Report - Supporting investm…
Acknowledged
The Department said the Office for Investment was set up to improve cross-government coordination on high-value strategically important investments, as the government recognised this was an area for improvement. It said that the Office for Investment was able to leverage the brand and authority of Downing Street through its links …
Government response. The government agrees with the observation, stating it actively engages with investors through existing fora like the Investment Council and annual surveys. It acknowledges the need for further steps to coordinate investment promotion and will implement relevant recommendations following the …
HM Treasury
24
Conclusion
Fifty-Sixth Report - Supporting investm…
Acknowledged
The NAO report found that the Department had strengthened how it worked with other government departments to present a more coherent UK offer to investors, including through the creation of the Office for Investment, but that there were opportunities to develop this further. The Department told us that it tried …
Government response. The government agrees with the observation, highlighting existing engagement mechanisms like the Investment Council and annual investor surveys. It acknowledges that further steps are necessary to improve cross-government coordination on investment promotion and will implement relevant recommendations following the Harrington …
HM Treasury
25
Recommendation
Fifty-Sixth Report - Supporting investm…
Acknowledged
We received written evidence from investors who wanted more long-term clarity on government policy. For example, the Global Infrastructure Investor Association said there should be greater focus in government on setting out route maps for investors against clear timelines, particularly for new technologies.62 We asked the Department about its relationship …
Government response. The government agrees with the recommendation and states it actively engages with investors through existing fora like the Investment Council and annual surveys. However, further steps to coordinate investment promotion and set out route maps will be determined and implemented …
HM Treasury