§ Mr. FallonTo ask the Prime Minister whether the programme of reviews of non-departmental public bodies, which she announced on 19 November 1984,Official Report, column 57–58, has now been completed; and if she will make a statement.
§ The Prime MinisterYes. I have now received a report on the review programme from the Minister of State, Privy Council Office and the Paymaster General. By April 1987,314W reviews had been carried out in over 75 per cent. of executive non-departmental public bodies, 75 per cent. of advisory bodies and over 60 per cent. of tribunals. For the period under review, departments reported total savings from their funding of NDPBs of some £30 million and 1,830 staff, as a result of winding up some 150 bodies, rationalisation of others, financial management reviews and other initiatives. Further savings are planned of 290 posts leading in total to continuing savings of some £33 million per year. NDPBs also expect to achieve additional value-for-money improvements from better standards of financial management. In all, there were 524 fewer NDPBs on 1 April 1987 than in 1979.
For the future, I have accepted the recommendations in the report that the main responsibility for maintaining this progress should be placed on senior management in the NDPBs and their sponsoring Departments. In addition, all NDPBs will be subject to a comprehensive review at least every five years, which will consider the continued need for each NDPB, its objectives and its financial and other management systems.
For some particular tasks, non-departmental public bodies can be the most appropriate and cost-effective solution, but we shall continue to resist proposals for new bodies unless this can be clearly demonstrated, within a strict framework of financial and management controls. Legislation setting up new bodies should normally contain powers to permit winding up at a later date, if a fixed lifetime is not established at the outset.