Select committee: Public Accounts Committee
Conclusion 5
33rd Report - Supporting the UK’s priority industry sectors
Published 25 Jun 2025
Addressed to HM Treasury
Public Accounts Committee Work of the Department for Business and Trade All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
There is a risk that the Department is not set up internally to support the aims of the forthcoming Industrial Strategy and to respond to ongoing issues facing UK businesses. The composition of sector teams in the Department’s Business Group varies by size and grade distribution, and is not always related to the priority, size or needs of the sectors they are intended to support. The Department has said that a review of its structure is ongoing, to clarify responsibilities and to allocate resources to the top priority sectors. However, there does not seem to be an overarching approach which considers the needs of individual sectors while accounting 5 for pan-sector issues such as skills, regulation, or geography. Using the forthcoming Industrial Strategy as a clear framework to direct and prioritise its activity is an important next step to address this. The Department must also be able to respond to urgent and emerging issues that businesses face. It needs to allocate and flex resources to meet the needs of important sectors such as steel, which is subject to fluctuating external challenges. recommendation The Department should critically review its internal structures and resourcing model to ensure they reflect the objectives and demands of the forthcoming Industrial Strategy. This could include, for example: its approach to individual sectors, including foundational sectors such as steel; pan-sector issues; geography; and how it will ensure it can respond effectively to emerging issues that affect UK businesses.
From: Public Accounts Committee, 33rd Report - Supporting the UK’s priority industry sectors (HC 1070), 25 June 2025
Government response
Latest Treasury Minutes progress report to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Thirty-third Report of Session 2024-26
The government responded to the whole report on 4 June 2026 (deadline 25 August 2025).
Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Thirty-third report from Session 2024-26
Published 18 September 2025.
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 each of the six recommendations, marking four as implemented and two with target implementation dates in 2026.
- On engagement with industry, it says a cross-government Account Management initiative has appointed dedicated account managers, and that it "will explore establishing dedicated Sector Offices" where there is appetite from industry.
- On cross-government working, it says it has developed a new digital system, the Strategic Company Insight Tool, and is "expanding usage" among departments.
- On understanding of its support for industry, the department says it "will collaborate across government and public bodies to enhance tracking and reporting" of support to the Industrial Strategy sectors.
- On internal structures, it states that its restructuring is "already in progress and will be mostly completed by Spring 2026". The response on balancing objectives has a target implementation date of Summer 2026.