Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the speech given by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster at the Business Services Association Annual Chairman’s Dinner on 19 November, for how long the Cabinet Office anticipates that pilots of new outsourced services will last.

The nature of the pilots for new outsourced services will depend on the specific service provision. Individual departments will consider the most appropriate route and timeframe for piloting new outsourced services as part of the Business Case approval process which will include the appropriate governance and approval process in departments and central approvals through HM Treasury and Cabinet Office.