HS2 reset: Lovegrove report unpacks lessons for civil service
20 May Finance

HS2 reset: Lovegrove report unpacks lessons for civil service

Recommendations include more realistic salaries for officials working on major projects and a culture shift away from “automatically” appointing career civil servant as SRO
by Jim Dunton
DSIT analysis director becomes joint head of Government Economic Service
29 Jun Finance
DSIT analysis director becomes joint head of Government Economic Service
Imperial College professor nominated by Reeves as next OBR chair
24 Jun Finance
Imperial College professor nominated by Reeves as next OBR chair
NAO lauds Government Finance Function for ‘strong foundations’ with 2030 strategy
19 Jun Finance
NAO lauds Government Finance Function for ‘strong foundations’ with 2030 strategy
In conversation with… former Treasury perm sec Lord Terry Burns
30 Jul 2025 Finance
In conversation with… former Treasury perm sec Lord Terry Burns
Welsh Government senior civil servant Peter McDonald talks to the former permanent secretary to the Treasury about responding to crises, working with ministers and solving problems. This article first appeared in the Heywood Quarterly
Home Office wrote off £48.5m after scrapping plan to use RAF base for asylum seekers
29 Jul 2025 Finance
Home Office wrote off £48.5m after scrapping plan to use RAF base for asylum seekers
Ministers axed RAF Scampton project after Home Office review found it did not represent value for money
NS&I chair steps down to become government whip
25 Jul 2025 Finance
NS&I chair steps down to become government whip
Lord Lemos leaves 15 months into term chairing the state-owned savings bank's board
UKRI commits extra £168m for public sector data-linking work
24 Jul 2025 Finance
UKRI commits extra £168m for public sector data-linking work
Funding announcement comes as MPs warn of “severe challenges” faced by research and innovation sector
NAO refuses to sign off Whole of Government Accounts again
18 Jul 2025 Finance
NAO refuses to sign off Whole of Government Accounts again
Spending watchdog blames ongoing crisis in local-government audit for “inadequate assurance” over billions of pounds in unaudited data
Jeremy Hunt: I had to earn civil servants’ trust after Tom Scholar sacking
17 Jul 2025 Finance
Jeremy Hunt: I had to earn civil servants’ trust after Tom Scholar sacking
Jeremy Hunt also speaks about the advice he gave to Wes Streeting and why he's not a fan of "mission-driven" government
UK’s capacity to absorb economic shocks is shrinking, OBR chair warns
15 Jul 2025 Finance
UK’s capacity to absorb economic shocks is shrinking, OBR chair warns
Richard Hughes says there has been “a de facto willingness” on the part of successive governments to allow debt to continue growing
Treasury hikes threshold for when new salaries require senior minister's approval
15 Jul 2025 Finance
Treasury hikes threshold for when new salaries require senior minister's approval
Top-level pay controls guidance update also includes new exceptions
New business-case rules for major projects come into force
14 Jul 2025 Finance
New business-case rules for major projects come into force
Treasury issues guidance for departments on new requirements for projects and programmes in the GMPP
Treasury working with departments to build integrated finance system
24 Jun 2025 Finance
Treasury working with departments to build integrated finance system
Tech will give HMT and departments real-time shared understanding of their performance against budgets and objectives
SR25: HMRC gets £1.7bn for big increase in compliance and debt management staff
12 Jun 2025 Finance
SR25: HMRC gets £1.7bn for big increase in compliance and debt management staff
Department also gets £500m "to make HMRC a truly digital-first organisation"
‘Radically’ shorter Green Book will support place-based budgeting and transformational change
11 Jun 2025 Finance
‘Radically’ shorter Green Book will support place-based budgeting and transformational change
Treasury announces results of review into its guidance on appraising policies and projects