Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee

Nineteenth Report - MoD Equipment Plan 2023–2033

Public Accounts Committee HC 451 Published 8 March 2024

Report Status

Government responded

Conclusions & Recommendations

27 items (5 recs)

Source

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Government Response

AI assessment · 26 of 27 classified

Accepted 17

Acknowledged 2

Rejected 7

Government response

Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Nineteenth report from Session 2023-24 · published 28 May 2024

Read the government response ↗ Response on the Index

Recommendations & Conclusions

2 items

2 Conclusion Acknowledged

Ensure all MoD budget holders consistently adopt the same approach to forecast costs.

Conclusion

The Plan is inconsistent because some parts of the Armed Forces include the costs of all capabilities that the government expects them to deliver, while others only include those they can afford. The MoD’s aim is that the Plan provides … Read more The Plan is inconsistent because some parts of the Armed Forces include the costs of all capabilities that the government expects them to deliver, while others only include those they can afford. The MoD’s aim is that the Plan provides a reliable assessment of the affordability of its equipment programme and demonstrates to Parliament how it will manage its funding to deliver equipment projects. The MoD headquarters provides the Front Line Commands and other budget holders with guidance on preparing their cost forecasts. However, it allows the budget holders to take different approaches to whether they include in their forecast costs all the capabilities they need to meet government’s expectations, or just those capabilities that they can afford. This flexibility has created an inconsistency of approach, which means that users of the Plan cannot compare Commands and other budget holders on a like-for-like basis. For example, the Royal Navy has included in the Plan predicted costs for all the capabilities the MoD expects it to deliver, and it has reported a deficit of £15.3 billion. In contrast, the Army has reported a deficit of £1.2 billion in the Plan, because it only includes those projects it can afford. However, its deficit would increase by around £12 billion if it had included all the capabilities the government has requested. The MoD conceded that a Plan compiled on a consistent basis would clearly be easier to interpret. 1 The date of the general election will be determined by the government, but must happen no later than 28 January 2025 according to the Electoral Commission. 6 MoD Equipment Plan 2023–2033 Recommendation 2: In future Plans, the MoD should ensure that all budget holders adopt the same approach to including forecast costs. This will help the Plan to achieve its aim of providing a reliable assessment of the affordability of its equipment programme, and improve transparency so allowing the Plan’s users, including Parliament, to compare contribu Show less

Government Response Summary

The government agrees with the recommendation and states that, for transparency and ease of comparison, the department will seek to standardise the data produced and presented for the Equipment Plan starting from the Annual Budgeting Cycle planning round process.

HM Treasury

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25 Conclusion Acknowledged

International developments highlight importance of strategic partnerships for interoperable defence equipment.

Conclusion

Recent international developments, including the war in Ukraine, have underlined the importance of strategic international partnerships for the UK.79 The UK has been working with its allies, including Ukraine, to develop interoperable equipment, pool essential munitions and encourage industry to … Read more

Government Response Summary

The government agrees with the importance of strategic international partnerships and describes its ongoing efforts to capitalize on the UK's convening power, review allied support, and engage industry, with a target implementation date of Spring 2025.

HM Treasury

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