Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 10
10
In its letter to us after our evidence session, HM Treasury recognised the helpful role...
Conclusion
In its letter to us after our evidence session, HM Treasury recognised the helpful role that the NAO cost tracker has played in improving transparency on the cost of COVID-19, as well as its role as the definitive source of information on the public expenditure costs of the pandemic. It told us that it would conduct “a routine review of material changes to the estimated costs of these measures and provide public updates”. It confirmed that this would include updates to the estimated lifetime costs of loans and updated costs for some public services measures “where these can be reliably attributed to COVID-19”. It did not comment, however, on which measures this would include, what would constitute material changes to estimated costs, or what approach it would take to monitoring the costs of those measures that were not included in the updates.24 23 Committee of Public Accounts, COVID 19: Culture Recovery Fund, Eighth Report of Session 2021–22, HC340, 23 June 2021 24 Letter from Tom Scholar, Permanent Secretary, HM Treasury, to Dame Meg Hillier MP, Monitoring the cost of cross-government programmes, 23 December 2021 12 COVID-19 cost tracker update 2 Fraud and error within pandemic spending
Government Response
Not Addressed
HM Government
Not Addressed
2. PAC recommendation: As part of its Treasury Minute response, HM Treasury should explain how, when, and which subsets of the data captured by the NAO in the COVID-19 cost tracker it will continue to update. This should also address how loan book commitments, including those made under the Culture Recovery Fund, and any associated liabilities, such as estimated write-off costs under the Bounce Back Loans Scheme, will be monitored. 2.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: Spring 2023 2.2 HM Treasury (the department) recognises the helpful role the cost tracker has played in improving transparency on the cost of COVID-19, providing timely updates on the nature and scale of spend. The Treasury has therefore committed to continue to conduct a routine review of these costs, where there have been material changes that can be reliably attributed to COVID-19, and to provide public updates. 2.3 These updates will be published annually for the next two years, after which the Treasury will review what is still required given, over time, it will become increasingly difficult to distinguish COVID-19 pandemic spend from business as usual spend. These annual publications will provide updates on, for example, the estimated lifetime cost of loans (including the Bounce Back Loan Scheme and loans through the Culture Recovery Fund). It will also provide updates on the costs of large COVID-19 pandemic specific public services measures, such as vaccines and balance sheet items such as personal protective equipment. 17 2.4 This annual document will supplement audited figures in departmental annual reports and accounts and other publications, providing a timely update with provisional (unaudited) data.