Background
Government supports industry to stimulate growth and productivity, secure jobs and supply chains, and help address policy challenges such as achieving net zero. The form of this support varies greatly – from grants and tax reliefs to advice and international agreements.
The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) was formed in February 2023, bringing together the former Department for International Trade (DIT) with the business focused functions of the former Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS). DBT is responsible for economic growth and supports businesses to invest, grow, and export.
Our report will consider the government’s support for priority industry sectors. It will build on our back catalogue of work on business support, including:
- Lessons learned: Monitoring and responding to companies in distress (2023)
- COVID-19 business grant schemes (2023)
- Support for exports (2020)
- Business support schemes (2020)
Scope
Our study will examine whether DBT is well-positioned to secure impact from its support for priority industry sectors, including how it works with other departments and delivery partners to do so. We will focus on whether:
- DBT has a robust approach to developing its support for priority industry sectors
- DBT is set up to implement this support effectively
- there is evidence that DBT’s activities are having an impact
NAO Team
Director: Leena Mathew
Audit Manager: Simran Nijjar