Select committee: Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 15
57th Report - Government services: Generating income
Published 10 Dec 2025
Addressed to HM Treasury
Public Accounts Committee Government services: Identifying costs and generating income All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
The NAO reported that the current timing of the process can result in fees that fail to keep pace with changing costs, particularly during periods of high inflation.28 The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) informed us that its latest fee change took around six months to complete and it is exploring annual reviews incorporating routine inflationary adjustments.29 The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) described a multi-stage review and approval stages before changing fees using legislation, which it explained is time-consuming. It highlighted its use of the section 102 order of the Finance (no 2) Act 1987 referenced in Managing Public Money (MPM)30, which provides a degree of flexibility to balance costs across services and reduce the need for frequent fee changes.31
From: Public Accounts Committee, 57th Report - Government services: Generating income (HC 890), 10 December 2025
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 1 April 2026 (deadline 10 February 2026).