UK Inquiry Tracker

Whitehall preparations for EU Exit

Public Accounts Committee Closed Inquiry

Opened: 7 Sep 2020 Closed: 19 Apr 2021 Parliament page

Following the UK’s decision to leave the EU in 2016, Government Departments had to formulate new policies, procure goods and services, design and implement new systems and engage stakeholders, while planning for multiple potential outcomes and responding to changing deadlines. Departments spent more than £4.4 billion on preparations between 2016 … Read more Following the UK’s decision to leave the EU in 2016, Government Departments had to formulate new policies, procure goods and services, design and implement new systems and engage stakeholders, while planning for multiple potential outcomes and responding to changing deadlines. Departments spent more than £4.4 billion on preparations between 2016 and 31 January 2020 (see also our recent inquiry on the Get Ready for Brexit public information campaign). Ahead of the then 31 October 2019 deadline, more than 22,000 civil servants were involved in EU Exit. The National Audit Office has produced 28 reports examining government’s preparations up to September 2020, and the latest on learning for Government from preparations from EU exit pulls together the insights from breadth of its work on EU Exit to give perspectives on what government can learn from this experience to prepare for the end of the transition period. It also has lessons for other cross-government challenges that have now arisen, such as the demands of the global Covid-19 pandemic, which similarly requires a fast-paced response, innovative policy solutions, coordinated action across government and effective, external transparency and communication; and longer-term challenges like preparing for the transition to a net zero carbon economy, which will require the civil service to innovate and operate in new ways. The report finds Government still has a lot to do to manage the end of the transition period, particularly on preparations for the border. It is now also responding to the demands of a global pandemic, which like EU Exit requires a fast-paced response, coordinated action and effective external transparency and communication. The key findings include: The need for government to improve how it deals with uncertainty by planning for scenarios which will have a significant impact and could reasonably occur, even if some of these may not be the desired outcome. The importance of government developing clear structures for quick decision-making and clear accountability. It should also draw on expertise in implementation from the start as a routine part of policy development, to build a realistic understanding of the scale and complexity of the task. The need to engage early with partners, stakeholders, businesses and individuals to understand and communicate what is required of them. The importance of strong financial management and the need to track spending from the outset. In October the Committee will question senior Cabinet Office officials on Whitehall’s readiness for Britain’s exit from the European Union on December 31 this year, and what it is learning which can be applied to other major, cross-Governmnet, global challenges we now face. If you have evidence on any of the issues raised in this inquiry, please submit it here by Thursday 1 October 2020. Show less

3 Recommendations

24 Conclusions

1 Report

1 Oral session

1 Event

Activity timeline 4 events

24 Mar
2021

Report published

Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Twenty ninth report from Session 2019-21

2 Dec
2020

Report published

Twenty-Ninth Report - Whitehall preparations for EU Exit

8 Oct
2020

Oral evidence

Whitehall preparations for EU Exit

8 Oct
2020

Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Wilson Room, Portcullis House

Whitehall preparations for EU Exit

Oral evidence sessions 1 session

8 Oct 2020

View on parliament.uk

Whitehall preparations for EU Exit

Alex Chisholm · Cabinet Office Cat Little · Cabinet Office Emma Churchill · Ministry of Justice Jess Glover · HM Treasury

Reports 1 report · click to expand

Title	HC No.	Published	Items	Response
Twenty-Ninth Report - Whitehall preparations for EU Exit	HC 682	2 Dec 2020	27	Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

27 results

2 Conclusion

Twenty-Ninth Report - Whitehall pr…

Government is not doing enough to ensure businesses and citizens will be ready for the...

Government is not doing enough to ensure businesses and citizens will be ready for the end of the transition period, and it is unclear what has been learnt from the previous ‘Get ready for Brexit’ campaign. The Cabinet Office launched … Read more

Government Response

2.1 The government agrees with this recommendation. Recommendation implemented 2.2 The government had been preparing extensively for all negotiation outcomes, and that included preparing third parties for the changes that … Read more

HM Treasury

Whitehall preparations for EU Exit

Activity timeline 4 events

Oral evidence sessions 1 session

Reports 1 report · click to expand

Recommendations & Conclusions

Government is not doing enough to ensure businesses and citizens will be ready for the...

Government continues to spend too much on consultants to undertake work that could be better...

EU Exit preparations involved more than 22,000 civil servants at the peak and have cost...

EU Exit and the Covid-19 response have shown up critical gaps in the civil service’s...

Government still does not have a good grip on how much taxpayers’ money is being...

On the basis of a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General, we took evidence...

The Cabinet Office relies on information departments provide on their readiness to identify the highest...

The Cabinet Office set out the current governance and decision-making structures for EU Exit.13 There...

The Cabinet Office recognises that other challenges government faces, such as the response to Covid-19,...

The Cabinet Office has a key role in ensuring government is ready to respond to...

Recent events have shown up the limitations in government’s forward planning capability when put into...

Our previous work on Covid-19 has highlighted the gaps in economic planning for pandemics, even...

Government spent £4.4 billion on preparations for EU Exit between the referendum and January 2020.34...

The Treasury has relied on existing departmental processes within the system of Accounting Officer accountability...

The Treasury has acknowledged the need for more timely, transparent financial information on cross-government areas...

At the peak, more than 22,000 civil servants worked on EU Exit, and at present...

There has been high turnover among staff working on EU Exit, particularly at senior levels.

Demands on the civil servants working on the Covid-19 pandemic response and/or EU Exit have...

Government has made extensive use of consultants to support preparations for EU Exit, and is...

The Cabinet Office set out that there is sometimes a need for consultants with 43...

The Cabinet Office launched a new communications campaign, ‘The UK’s new start: let’s get going’,...

Despite the new campaign having been underway for some time, there remains a significant risk...

The Covid-19 pandemic has had an impact on readiness for EU Exit.

Although the Cabinet Office believes it has been clear that businesses need to be ready...

We are concerned that industry bodies have said that government has not provided key information...

The Cabinet Office admitted that the market for customs agents is not expanding at the...

In the event of major delays at the short Channel crossings, the Cabinet Office told...