Departmental Underspend (Hansard, 16 January 2003)

§ Mr. Charles Clarke

Final expenditure figures for 2002–03 are not available until the publication of the Public Expenditure Outturn White Paper in July 2003.

Figures for 1997–98 to 2001–02 are presented in the following table:

£million
	1997–98	1998–99	1999–2000	2000–01	2001–02
Total in year underspend	72	261	615	1,128	1,246
Of which:
DfES	72	259	536	998	1,111
Sure Start	—	2	76	129	71
Ofsted	0	0	4	1	3
Children's Fund	—	—	—	—	61

The main reason for these in-year variances from plans stems from the nature of the Department's budgets and the difficulties this causes in forecasting spending accurately. For example: new and innovative programmes such as Sure Start rely on the pace of build up of local partnerships; capital projects can also take longer than anticipated to get off the ground; and the Department has a significant number of demand led budgets. The availability of End-Year Flexibility is designed to allow us to manage such fluctuations sensibly over a number of years.

This year my Department intends to utilise approximately £600 million accumulated End-Year Flexibility, across a range of priorities, this will be drawn down at the spring Supplementary Estimate in February. The planned use of over £880 million accumulated End-Year Flexibility for years beyond 2002–03 was tabled in my statement of 19 December 2002, Official Report, column 67WS.

Notes:

1. All figures represent in year underspends with the exception of 1997–98 which includes cumulative underspends from the previous year. They are measured against the Departmental Expenditure Limit including any accumulated End-Year Flexibility drawn down in the year concerned.

2. Figures exclude Welfare to Work and the Employment Service prior to the machinery of government changes in June 2001.

3. Figures are not comparable due to the change to Resource Accounting and Budgeting in 1998–99. Figures for 1997–98 are in cash accounting terms.