Select committee: Public Accounts Committee
Conclusion 15
20th Report - DCMS management of COVID-19 loans
Published 2 Apr 2025
Addressed to HM Treasury
Public Accounts Committee DCMS management of COVID-19 loans All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
We therefore asked the Department how, if it did not have estimates of future costs beyond 2025–26, it was modelling the expected balance of costs against income in future years. It replied that it was conducting 24 Qq 62, 73; C&AG’s Report, paras 10 and 2.9 25 Qq 67, 71, 72 26 Q 80; C&AG’s Report, paras 10 and 2.9 27 Qq 73–75, 81–82; Letter from DCMS Permanent Secretary, 25 February 2025 28 Q30; C&AG’s Report, paras 17 and 3.3 29 C&AG’s Report, paras 17 and 3.4 30 Q 28; C&AG’s Report, para 3.3 31 Q 29 12 a review of its strategic options for the future of the loan book.32 The Department had undertaken such a review in 2021 and into 2022 when PwC had given it advice on all its options for the loan book, including the current hybrid approach to its management and its sale.33 It told us that it intends to undertake a similar review later in 2025–26 once all borrowers have made at least one repayment and the scheme is in a steady state with a solid operating model, experience of operating the loan management system, and a track record of repayment in place.34 The review will include more detailed costings and a review of various options.35 The Department said that it was keen to look at as many scenarios as it could think of. Future options include: the current arrangements for managing the loan book; the loan book’s sale; its consolidation with other government loans; or the appointment by the Department of specialists to manage its loans.36 The Department informed us that it had obtained an indicative range of the sale price back when PwC had advised it on its options in 2021 and 2022.37 We noted that an up–to–date valuation of potential receipts from the loan book’s sale will form an essential benchmark for this review.38 32 Qq 30, 31 33 Q 35; Letter from DCMS Permanent Secretary, 25 February 2025; C&AG’s Report, para 3.5 34 Qq 10, 12, 29–32 35 Qq 28, 30 36 Qq 31, 33, 35 37 Q 36 38 Q 33 13 2 Managing future risks Future repayment and insolvency levels
From: Public Accounts Committee, 20th Report - DCMS management of COVID-19 loans (HC 364), 2 April 2025
Government response
Latest Treasury Minutes progress report to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Twentieth Report of Session 2024-26
The government responded to the whole report on 4 June 2026.
Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Twentieth report from Session 2024-25
Published 10 July 2025.
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government agrees with the Committee's recommendations on loan book management, the loan management system, long-term options, repayment forecasts, borrower management and borrower engagement, but disagrees with the recommendation on rugby union accountability.
- On long-term options, the government agrees and says a strategic review, to be completed in 2025-26, will assess options "including, but not limited to, a sale or partial sale of the loan book".
- On repayment estimates, the government agrees, with a target date of December 2025. It says further cost, repayment and insolvency modelling will be done through its strategic review.
- On the PwC contract, the government agrees and says the full loan management system functionality was implemented in March 2025 "for under £300,000". The PwC contract has been extended for a further year.
- On rugby union accountability, the government disagrees with the recommendation. It "continues to believe" accountability is best achieved by a Director General within the department as Additional Accounting Officer, rather than a Permanent Secretary from another department.