Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, following the Crown Commercial Service (CCS) annual report and accounts 2023–24, published on 24 July, when they expect the Office for National Statistics to complete its review of the CCS classification status; whether they support reclassifying the CCS as a central government entity; and how such a reclassification might affect the trading fund model and the future financial freedoms of the CCS.

HM Treasury (HMT) and the Office for National Statistics (ONS) initiated a formal review of the sector classification in 2024 of CCS as part of their ongoing programme of assessments of the statistical and financial reporting classification of public sector bodies in the National Accounts. The ONS completed the final review in October 2024 and published the outcome on its website. It concluded that CCS’s existing sector classification as a public corporation is correct. This means that CCS will remain a Trading Fund.

https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/governmentpublicsectorandtaxes/publicsectorfinance/articles/developmentofpublicsectorfinancestatistics/september2024