Conclusion 2

The Department is not working effectively enough with other departments to support industry and achieve the greatest impact. The Department views the economy through the lens of 10 economic sectors and 41 sub-sectors. While the Department is responsible for supporting businesses in general, it is not itself responsible for all the relationships and policy interventions involving these sectors and must work with at 3 least 10 other government departments. The Department’s relationships with these bodies vary in maturity and there is no shared understanding of sector ownership, roles, or responsibilities. Prior to the announcement of the Industrial Strategy, the Department proposed formalising sector roles and responsibilities between departments by agreeing ‘handshakes’ which were akin to memorandums of understanding (MoU), but this approach was not widely adopted. Some cross-government structures have developed which aim to look at issues in an integrated way, such as the Office for Life Sciences, a skills forum, and the recent Growth Mission Board, and there is potential for this approach to be used more widely. The Department analyses and shares business intelligence across government, giving insight into senior engagement with businesses and sectoral issues, but its reporting could be improved. recommendation The Department should develop the way it works with other departments to support industry, looking to: • reach a common understanding of industry sectors, roles, and responsibilities with other government departments, formalise this with MoUs, and consider the most appropriate models for effective cross-government working; and • take steps to improve its intelligence sharing and explore digital solutions.