This Committee recommended in 2016 that the Department should strengthen its understanding of the scale and nature of authorities’ commercial activities, ensure that the purpose and geographical location of capital spending can be ascertained, and strengthen its use of quantitative data to ensure it understands risks across the sector relating to capital spending.59 Further recommendations about improving data on, or monitoring of, commercial risk followed in 2019 and 2020.60 We have also recommended the Department collect more useful data on local authority reserves.61