Press release

Review into HM Treasury’s management of the financial crisis

HM Treasury is today publishing a review of its management response to the financial crisis of 2007 - 09.

From:
HM Treasury
Published
29 March 2012
This was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

HM Treasury is today publishing a review of its management response to the financial crisis of 2007 - 09. The review follows a request from the Public Accounts Committee for the Treasury to conduct a ‘lessons learnt’ exercise.

The review considers the Treasury’s management capability during the crisis. It does not assess the effectiveness of the policy decisions taken during the crisis, which have been the subject of a number of enquiries and reviews conducted by the Public Accounts Committee, Treasury Select Committee and National Audit Office.

The review makes a series of recommendations intended to improve the Treasury’s financial services capability, including contingency planning, and address wider management challenges including staff turnover. Its conclusions represent the views of the review team and the Treasury will publish its response to the review in the summer.

Commenting on the review, Sir Nicholas Macpherson, Permanent Secretary to the Treasury, said:

I’m very grateful to Sharon and her team for their work over the past six months. This report will help the Treasury learn the lessons of its handling of the financial crisis which started five years ago and ensure the department has the right capability to fulfil its duties in relation to financial services in the future.

Notes for Editors

  1. Review of HM Treasury’s response to the financial crisis 2007-09

  2. The review was launched on 17 October 2011. View the original press notice, which includes the terms of reference for the Review.

  3. This review followed calls from the National Audit Office and the Public Accounts Committee for a review on how HM Treasury was resourced, structured and managed in preparation for the crisis, during its response, and the aftermath. It did not assess the effectiveness of the policy decisions which were taken.

  4. Sharon White has led the Review since it began in October 2011. In December 2011, Ms White was appointed Director General, Public Spending in HM Treasury.

  5. The Review team consulted over 150 individuals from over 50 organisations, including the Treasury, the Bank of England, the Financial Services Authority, city stakeholders and other government departments.

Published 29 March 2012