Value for Money
Palace of Westminster Restoration and Renewal Programme
This report looks at the Restoration and Renewal Programme to identify potential risks and recommend how these may be addressed.
Recommendations (21)
Source: NAO Recommendations Tracker · PAC follow-up below
Houses of Parliament
Rec 1
Accepted
Implemented
We recommend that Parliament:
• puts in place clear structures to provide the Client Team with a single set of objectives and requirements that brings together perspectives from both Houses; and
R&R Client Team
Rec 10
Accepted
Implemented
• for each area of uncertainty, considers how these will be reflected across the Programme such as through estimates, ranges or contingencies. Ranges could be calculated based on either probability or scenario-testing depending on the degree of uncertainty. These and contingencies should be adjusted, and reduced, as things become more certain.
R&R Client Team
Rec 11
Accepted
Implemented
We recommend the Client Team:
• works towards developing evidence-based cost and time ranges to manage the Programme. These should include a plan with milestones setting out when estimates could be reassessed with more certainty and the ranges narrowed;
R&R Client Team
Rec 12
Accepted
Implemented
• develops, alongside these ranges, internal benchmarks and information to measure performance such as a target cost for the Delivery Authority to work to and an overall budget; and
R&R Client Team
Rec 13
Accepted
Implemented
• explains, including to Parliament, the need to use ranges for cost estimates and completion dates at this stage given the inherent uncertainties. Once developed, Parliament should publish this information regularly in a standardised format, reflecting the information available at each stage of the programme.
R&R Client Team
Rec 14
Accepted
Implemented
We recommend that the Client Team and Parliament:
• introduce clear and agreed change processes that establish which changes are significant enough to reopen requirements after the business case has been approved, and how the time and cost implications of any changes are weighed against potential benefits;
R&R Client Team
Rec 15
Accepted
Implemented
• use the opportunity of ‘natural breakpoints’ to reconsider the strength of early assumptions about time and cost rather than continuing based on outdated assumptions; and
R&R Client Team
Rec 16
Accepted
Implemented
• reduce the likelihood of previous decisions being reopened, by ensuring they are transparent, based on the best available evidence and making clear the cost and timing implications of any alternatives.
R&R Client Team
Rec 17
Accepted
Implemented
We recommend the Client Team:
• as part of its integrated plan, clarifies responsibilities for projects and sets out the interdependencies between them. The plan should be regularly reviewed and provide a realistic view of when projects should deliver, the aggregate risk and key milestones;
R&R Client Team
Rec 18
Accepted
Implemented
• establishes the processes and functions needed to manage the project interdependencies and to understand overall progress; and
R&R Client Team
Rec 19
Accepted
Implemented
• where risks need to be taken, such as starting a project early given a wider interdependency, recognises and manages the additional risks.
Houses of Parliament
Rec 2
Accepted
No Longer Relevant
• allows the Sponsor Body to make decisions and fulfil its statutory role, using clear and agreed measures to monitor its progress.
R&R Client Team
Rec 20
Accepted
Implemented
We recommend the Client Team:
• considers up front how to balance freedom and oversight of the Delivery Authority across the different Programme stages, ensuring it has the right controls in place to manage the relationship as it evolves; and
R&R Client Team
Rec 21
Accepted
Implemented
• develops a clear assurance plan appropriate to the risks and maturity of the Programme. This should make the most of opportunities for the Programme to be externally assured, such as through the Infrastructure and Projects Authority.
R&R Client Team
Rec 3
Accepted
No Longer Relevant
We recommend that the Sponsor Body and Parliament:
• put in place clear structures to work together to establish a single set of objectives and requirements; and
R&R Client Team
Rec 4
Accepted
Implemented
• clarify roles and responsibilities for managing risks and uncertainties, including how roles may change during the Programme.
R&R Client Team
Rec 5
Accepted
Implemented
We recommend that the Client Team:
• finalises its engagement strategy to ensure Parliament is kept informed and its views are sought at the right time; and
R&R Client Team
Rec 6
Accepted
Implemented
• ensures that it has the necessary skills, knowledge and expertise to engage effectively with Parliament.
R&R Client Team
Rec 7
Accepted
Work in Progress
We recommend that the Client Team and Parliament:
• agree clear objectives and requirements for the Programme’s business case, being realistic on what can be achieved without ‘gold-plating’; and
R&R Client Team
Rec 8
Accepted
Implemented
• in agreeing requirements, consider the needs of those who will work in the Palace, and how the Palace will be maintained, in future years.
R&R Client Team
Rec 9
Accepted
Implemented
We recommend that the Client Team:
• identifies and evaluates the elements of the Programme which are uncertain, and develops a plan to reduce these over time; and
Parliamentary Committee Follow-Up
The Public Accounts Committee examined this NAO report and published its own recommendations. The government responds to PAC recommendations via Treasury Minutes.
Fifty-Second Report - Restoration & Renewal of the Palace of Westminster – 2023 Recall
Public Accounts Committee
· 17 May 2023
· 15 recommendations