Select committee: Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 12
44th Report - Governance and decision-making on major projects
Published 10 Sep 2025
Addressed to HM Treasury
Public Accounts Committee Governance and decision-making on major projects All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
Mega-projects display several characteristics which, when taken together, make them more difficult to deliver than major projects. They often have the potential to be transformational to the economy or society and are scentral to the government’s efforts to achieve its priorities. They may involve high levels of innovation or be the first of their type. The benefits of these projects can affect many parts of society, the economy and the environment; therefore, they cut across the interests of multiple departments and agencies. The environment in which mega-projects are delivered is often highly complex and challenging–primary legislation may be required, they may have multiple stakeholders, be delivered over multiple electoral and economic cycles, and involve extensive supply chains. Also, they often have a combination of high cost, risk and uncertainty, so that cost increases can dominate the financial position of a department. Finally, mega-projects can require substantial time for value and benefits to materialise.23
From: Public Accounts Committee, 44th Report - Governance and decision-making on major projects (HC 642), 10 September 2025
Government response
Latest Treasury Minutes progress report to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Forty-fourth Report of Session 2024-26
The government responded to the whole report on 4 June 2026 (deadline 10 November 2025).
Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Forty-Fourth report from Session 2024-26
Published 19 January 2026.
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" in each of the responses set out, with some marked as implemented and others given target dates.
- On the Committee's request for a 12-month update on mega-project governance, the government agrees, with a target implementation date of September 2026; the Treasury "will write to the Committee".
- On the £10 billion mega-project threshold and on alignment with Mission and place-based governance, the government agrees and records both recommendations as implemented, stating the Treasury "has written to the Committee".
- On assurance, NISTA "will be reviewing and consulting on the assurance framework holistically"; the Treasury will tie higher Delegated Authority Limits to departments evidencing compliance with standards.
- On reporting, the government agrees; NISTA "will consider how" existing reporting can be integrated with reporting against the Strategy, and the infrastructure pipeline "will be updated at least every six months".