Select committee: Public Accounts Committee
Conclusion 16
77th Report - Accountability in small government bodies
Published 24 Apr 2026
Addressed to HM Treasury
Public Accounts Committee Accountability in small government bodies All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
Some of the functions’ self-assessments and guidance require specialist expertise that small bodies often lack. For instance, the criteria for a ‘good’ level of compliance with the HR standard include escalation to complex casework specialists.35 Small bodies often rely on their sponsor department to access this expertise.36 The Ministry of Justice told us that it tailors the support it provides to each of its sponsored bodies based on their operations, budget and risks.37
From: Public Accounts Committee, 77th Report - Accountability in small government bodies (HC 887), 24 April 2026
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 4 August 2026 (deadline 24 June 2026).