Managing government borrowing

Public Accounts Committee Closed Inquiry
Opened: 12 Sep 2023 Closed: 3 May 2024 Parliament page
Government debt has risen over time, following support provided for the banking sector during the 2007-08 financial crisis, and measures to protect the economy and public health during the pandemic. The Committee reported in 2018 that high levels of Government debt left little room for manoeuvre in public spending, with … Read more
6 Recommendations
17 Conclusions
1 Report
1 Oral session
1 Event
Activity timeline 4 events
3 May
2024
Report published
5 Mar
2024
Report published
7 Dec
2023
Oral evidence
7 Dec
2023
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Thatcher Room, Portcullis House
Oral evidence sessions 1 session
7 Dec 2023
View on parliament.uk
Managing government borrowing; Pre-panel: Managing government borrowing
Dax Harkins · National Savings and Investments James Bowler CB · HM Treasury Richard Hughes · Office for Budget Responsibility Sir Robert Stheeman · Debt Management Office
Title HC No. Published Items Response
Fifteenth Report - Managing government borrowing HC 74 5 Mar 2024 23 Responded
Recommendations & Conclusions
6 results
Clear
6 Conclusion Deferred
Fifteenth Report - Managing govern…
NS&I lacks a suitable alternative to its discontinued Value Indicator performance metric.
To deliver its remit, NS&I must balance the interests of savers by offering a fair return, and the interests of the taxpayer by minimising finance costs. At the same time, it must also maintain an appropriate competitive position in the … Read more
Government Response
The government agrees with the implicit recommendation to improve performance measurement. It commits to examining international best practice and assessing quantitative and qualitative measures by Spring 2025, and will write to the Committee upon conclusion of this analysis.
HM Treasury
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8 Recommendation Deferred
Fifteenth Report - Managing govern…
CMA provisionally found major banks broke competition laws affecting DMO gilt auctions.
In May 2023, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) provisionally found that five major banks broke competition laws on UK gilts. Each bank allegedly unlawfully shared competitively sensitive information relating to the buying and selling of UK government gilts. The … Read more
Government Response
The government accepts the implicit recommendation and commits to writing to the Committee with the requested information within two months of the CMA's investigation concluding, but the target implementation date is TBD due to the CMA's open-ended timeline.
HM Treasury
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9 Conclusion Deferred
Fifteenth Report - Managing govern…
DMO cannot police GEMM behaviour effectively, making no changes despite manipulation risks.
The DMO stressed that it expected all GEMMs to “adhere 100%” to all regulations and the applicable laws, but because the DMO is not itself a regulator it cannot police the behaviour of the GEMMs. It added that GEMMs, which … Read more
Government Response
The government agrees with the implicit recommendation and commits that HMT and DMO will write to the Committee with information within two months of the Competition and Market Authority’s investigation conclusion, deferring any further actions until then.
HM Treasury
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10 Conclusion Deferred
Fifteenth Report - Managing govern…
OBR highlights need for more information on overseas UK gilt ownership for risk management.
We asked the OBR whether any improvements could be made to government’s borrowing processes. The OBR expressed a desire for more information on the owners of UK gilts held overseas, which it said represented arounds 25% of all UK debt … Read more
Government Response
The government claims the recommendation is implemented, stating it currently lacks visibility of beneficial gilt owners. However, it commits to reviewing sovereign bond ownership data from other countries to learn from their approaches.
HM Treasury
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11 Conclusion Deferred
Fifteenth Report - Managing govern…
Treasury and DMO lack accurate data on ultimate beneficial owners of overseas gilts.
We asked the Treasury how much it knew about the owners of UK debt held overseas. The Treasury recognised that it did not have a “very accurate picture” because gilts were a “traded commodity” and may be sold on. The … Read more
Government Response
The government claims the recommendation is implemented, stating it currently lacks visibility of beneficial gilt owners. However, it commits to reviewing sovereign bond ownership data from other countries to learn from their approaches.
HM Treasury
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16 Conclusion Deferred
Fifteenth Report - Managing govern…
Government gilt redemptions peaking in 2024-25, challenging DMO's cash management function.
Not only does the government face growing pressure to borrow more in the future, but it also needs to ensure it can repay its current debts. The DMO issues gilts of varying length, ranging from one to more than 50 … Read more
Government Response
The government agrees with the implicit recommendation to improve performance measurement. It commits to examining international best practice and assessing quantitative and qualitative measures by Spring 2025, and will write to the Committee upon conclusion of this analysis.
HM Treasury
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Government Response AI assessment · 23 of 6 classified
Accepted 11
Acknowledged 5
Deferred 6
Not Addressed 1
Total 6 recs + 17 conclusions