Select committee: Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 12
Twenty-Third Report - Delivering carrier strike
Published 13 Nov 2020
Addressed to HM Treasury
Public Accounts Committee Delivering carrier strike All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
The Department assured us that it did not have major concerns over its budget for sustaining a carrier strike group and that it could place the support contracts it needs.31 However, it admitted that it does not yet fully understand the maintenance requirements and told us that the budget for spare parts is tight.32 The Department acknowledged that it has not prioritised investment in support activities—including spares and weapons stockpiles—in the way that it should have done. This has meant that maintenance periods 20 Qq 6, 17, 72 21 Q 17 22 Q 20 23 Qq 19–21 24 HC Committee of Public Accounts, Delivering Carrier Strike, Fourteenth Report of Session 2017–2019, HC 394, January 2018 25 Q 75; Comptroller and Auditor General: Ministry of Defence: The Equipment Plan 2019 to 2029, Session 2019–20, HC 111, National Audit Office, February 2020 26 Q 75 27 C&AG’s Report, paras 3.15and 3.16 28 C&AG’s Report, para 15 29 Letter from Stephen Lovegrove, 20 August 2020 30 Qq 69, 70 31 Q 74 32 Qq 69, 76 Delivering carrier strike 11 for the carriers have occasionally been delayed.33 The Comptroller and Auditor General identified examples where the Department had scaled back investment on support activities on affordability grounds, such as postponing the purchase of a second Lightning II spares pack.34 As a result, there is a risk that the Department may not have sufficient provision in later years’ budgets to reflect the full costs of operating Carrier Strike.35 The Department acknowledged that it must make sure it had appropriate support to operate Carrier Strike on a global scale and meet the Government’s aims.36 33 Qq 16, 76 34 Q76, C&AG’s Report para 3.7 35 C&AG’s Report para 16 36 Q 76 12 Delivering carrier strike 2 Providing essential supporting capabilities
From: Public Accounts Committee, Twenty-Third Report - Delivering carrier strike (HC 684), 13 November 2020
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 4 February 2021.
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government states that it agrees with the Committee's recommendation on six of its recommendations (numbered 1 to 6), and disagrees with one part, on the whole life cost of buying more than 48 jets.
- On future ambitions for Carrier Strike, the government agrees; the department says that once the Integrated Review is published it "will evaluate the outcomes in detail to refine its policy ambitions", with any future investments captured in the costed 10-year Equipment Plan.
- On the cost of more than 48 jets, the government disagrees, stating it is "not possible" to expand the costing model beyond 48 aircraft until the Integrated Review results are known and a formal mandate change to the Lightning Programme is issued.
- On Lightning II expenditure, the government agrees, but notes that the private briefing agreed with the Committee for 20 January 2021 "does not meet the recommendation timeline (within one month)".
- On Crowsnest, the government agrees and says a written brief on how it has addressed the late delivery "will be provided to the Committee in February 2021"; full capability is to be achieved in 2023.