Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 25
25
Accepted
The NAO estimated that government spent at least £486 million on cross-border travel measures in...
Conclusion
The NAO estimated that government spent at least £486 million on cross-border travel measures in 2021–22 across the five main departments responsible for the system. Government did not track the cost of implementing cross-border travel measures. The Cabinet Office said that it considered that the border measures were not a single programme, but a portfolio of programmes run by different Departments, and that individual departments had monitored their own spend against the programmes that they were responsible for.44
Government Response Summary
HM Treasury will consider what additional guidance should be issued to departments on how cross-government portfolios should report and track their overall cost on an ongoing basis, as part of ongoing work looking at improving joint working across government. HM Treasury will write to the Committee with an update by Spring 2023.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
2.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: Spring 2023 2.2 The government collates and publishes a wide range of expenditure data, much of which tracks large cross-government portfolios, including: • spending figures in the Budget and Spending Review documents, which often cover thematic cross-government spend, for example on support for Ukraine. • the Infrastructure & Projects Authority’s (IPA’s) Annual Report on major projects, which covers all projects in the Government Major Project Portfolio. Alongside the annual report, the IPA publishes data on major projects – including data on costs, delivery timelines, and delivery confidence assessments. • standalone reports on areas of significant spend, like the government’s Net Zero Strategy which covers cross-government work. • departmental annual reports and accounts, detailing departmental spend, for example 2019-20 thematic expenditure data on preparations for EU exit. • Whole of Government Accounts, reporting on all areas of spend across the public sector. 2.3 Through these channels, HM Treasury has central oversight of areas of significant cross-government spend. For example, the Government Major Projects Portfolio, managed by 30 the IPA, tracks the largest, most innovative and highest risk projects and programmes delivered by government – currently 235 projects with total whole life costs of £678 billion. 2.4 HM Treasury will consider what additional guidance should be issued to departments on how cross-government portfolios should report and track their overall cost on an ongoing basis, as part of ongoing work looking at improving joint working across government. HM Treasury will write to the Committee with an update by the target implementation date.