Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 15
15
Acknowledged
Department tracks overall spending but lacks systems to breakdown support by type
Conclusion
The Department tracks its programme spending, grant expenditure and Business Group resource spending across sector teams but does not have processes to break this down by support type using existing systems. In 2023–24, the Department spent £790.9 million on business support grants, 62.5% of which was allocated to advanced manufacturing, 29.9% to energy, and 6.4% to pan-sector support. The Department’s Business Group reported spending £530.3 million on business support programmes. Of this, £250.1 million went to the Automotive Transformation Fund.31 The Department told us that its support for a sector was not just financial, and provided the financial services sector as an example, noting the main engagement with this sector is led by HM Treasury. The Department told us that to ensure the UK has an international advantage in the sector, it is not about financial support to banks, but rather ensuring that the regulatory environment, for example, is appropriate.32 27 Q 55 28 Q 56 29 C&AG’s Report, para 1.3 30 C&AG’s Report, case studies 1 and 4 31 C&AG’s Report, key facts, para 10 32 Q 63 11
Government Response Summary
The department currently supports industry through a range of interventions, the scale and form of which varies greatly, spending £790.9 million on business support grants in 2023–24, with 62.5% going to the advanced manufacturing sector and 29.9% to the energy sector.
Government Response
Acknowledged
HM Government
Acknowledged
The department currently supports industry through a range of interventions, the scale and form of which varies greatly. In 2023–24, it spent £790.9 million on business support grants, 62.5% of which went to the advanced manufacturing sector and 29.9% to the energy sector.