Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 18
18
We received written evidence from the Royal Statistical Society, from Northumbria University on behalf of...
Conclusion
We received written evidence from the Royal Statistical Society, from Northumbria University on behalf of the Observatory for Monitoring Data-Driven Approaches to COVID-19, and from Civitas: Institute for the Study of Civil Society. This emphasised the need for government to be more transparent in publishing the data and rationale behind key policy decisions in order to strengthen public trust. They recommended the publication of cost-benefit analyses, impact assessments and explanatory justifications setting out the additional factors, judgements and assumptions considered as part of policy decisions and limitations or uncertainties within the data.39 The Cabinet Office told us that government had improved how it provides the data it uses to inform its decisions. It also highlighted that its COVID-19 response strategy published in February 2021 included a large amount of data to explain the evidence that underlies decisions.40
Government Response
Not Addressed
HM Government
Not Addressed
3: PAC conclusion: Government risks undermining public trust and accountability for the pandemic response because of departments’ repeated failure to provide a full rationale for key decisions. 3: PAC recommendation: The Department should update us by 31 October 2021 on the number of contracts awarded during the pandemic that are yet to be published. • In the longer term the Cabinet Office should ensure that lead departments for each of the main pandemic response programmes publish post-project evaluations in a timely manner. These should provide an evidence-based assessment of each project’s impact and the extent to which it met its objectives 3.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: November 2021 3.2 DHSC will write to the Committee, as directed, on the number of contracts awarded during the COVID-19 pandemic that are yet to be published. 3.3 The Cabinet Office will write to departmental SROs who lead on each of the main pandemic response programmes, setting out the expectation that each department should publish post-project evaluations within a reasonable timeframe after each project’s conclusion and they should include an assessment of the extent to which the projects have met their objectives