Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 12
12
Accepted
Prioritising new Developed Vetting clearances causes service level deterioration for other clearance types.
Conclusion
The Cabinet Office defended the repeated policy decision to defer renewals on the grounds that it was “risk-based and a decision taken with our customers”. It acknowledged that the cumulative impact of deferring renewals for several years created additional challenges but also said that “if you have a choice between waiting nine months for someone to come in and do a critical job, or extending a renewal that has been in place for seven years and no risks have been identified with the individual, all the customers around the table agreed that that was the preferable way to go”. It said the decision to defer renewals and to prioritise new clearance applications meant that it was able to reduce the processing time for new applications to 177 days at its worst, to the current 98 days.28 However, with limited resources, prioritising one area has inevitably led to deteriorating 21 Qq 6, 35 22 Qq 36, 37 23 Q 37 24 Qq 40,41; C&AG’s 2023 Report, paras 2.9, 2.10 and Figure 9 25 Qq 43, 44, 45 26 Q 29; C&AG’s 2023 Report, para 2.5 27 C&AG’s 2023 Report, paras 2.6, 2.7 28 Qq 9, 10, 29 The performance of UK Security Vetting 13 service levels in other areas; as new DV clearances were prioritised at the start of 2022, the percentage of CTC/SC clearances that were being processed within target times slipped further.29
Government Response Summary
The government plans to stabilise the DV renewal service line by March 2024, supported by a significant injection of surge resources for the current financial year to clear the backlog and ensure continuity of service on other products.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
3.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: March 2024 3.2 UKSV is planning for the DV renewal service line to be stabilised by the end of March 2024 and performance sustained thereafter. As set out above, in response to recommendation 1, ministers have agreed a significant injection of surge resources into UKSV for this financial year including HMRC Surge personnel and operational staff. These staff will enable UKSV to address the backlog before reverting to Business-as-Usual staffing. The surge of resources, and the sequencing of efforts (as set out above) are designed to ensure continuity of service on other products while the backlog is addressed.