Cost-benefit analysis of COVID-19 business support schemes
Dear Her Majesty's Treasury,
Please inform me of the nature and results of cost-projected benefit analyses undertaken prior to launching the schemes, notably:
Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS)
Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CLBILS)
Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS)
Self-employment Income Support (SEISS)
Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS).
Yours faithfully,
Jeremy Ramsden
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Our ref: FOI2020/19000
Dear Mr Ramsden,
Thank you for your request for information which we are considering under
the terms of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
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Yours sincerely
Information Rights Unit | Correspondence and Information Rights | HM
Treasury, 1 Horse Guards Road, London, SW1A 2HQ [1]www.gov.uk/hm-treasury
Correspondence and Information Rights | HM Treasury, 1 Horse Guards Road,
London, SW1A 2HQ [2]www.gov.uk/hm-treasury
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Dear Mr Ramsden
Please find attached an interim letter in response to your Freedom of
Information request.
Yours sincerely
Information Rights Unit | HM Treasury, 1 Horse Guards Road, London, SW1A
2HQ [1]www.gov.uk/hm-treasury
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Dear Mr Ramsden
Please find attached a letter in response to your Freedom of Information
request.
For ease of reference, the attached letter contains the following
clickable hyperlink:
[1]https://www.gov.uk/government/organisati...
Yours sincerely
Information Rights Unit | HM Treasury, 1 Horse Guards Road, London, SW1A
2HQ [2]www.gov.uk/hm-treasury
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Dear Her Majesty's Treasury,
Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.
I am writing to request an internal review of Her Majesty's Treasury's handling of my FOI request 'Cost-benefit analysis of COVID-19 business support schemes'.
Considering that the matters about which I enquired may represent together the greatest single expenditure ever made by the government, I cannot accept that its justfication remains hidden. The motive for concealing the information is given as disclosure being "likely to prejudice the economic interests of the UK". On the contrary, if it is seen that an exemplary analysis was carried out, the prestige of the UK will be enhanced. On the other hand if the analysis is deficient, it is right and proper that citizens are aware in order that they can contribute to remedying the deficiencies.
A further motive for concealment is given: to "protect the Government’s ability to
discuss and develop policies candidly and to reach well-formed conclusions". Again the thinking is erroneous. If the conclusions are indeed well-formed, then the path to them serves as a paragon to inspire citizens. But the expertise of Government is only a tiny fraction of the total expertise of the nation. Disclosure is essential to allow citizens to add their expertise to that of the Government. Even if the conclusions are well-formed, they could be made even better by disclosure.
Therefore I reiterate my request for the information.
I am also dissatisfied with the penultimate paragraph of your letter "A wealth of information on COVID-19 is already published on the GOV.UK website.
However, you may wish to access the Treasury’s website for the latest information on the
Chancellor’s measures in response to COVID-19:
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisati.... This is completely irrelevant to my query and gives the impression of attempting to make a smokescreen to deflect my attention from my original query.
A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/c...
Yours faithfully,
Jeremy Ramsden
Dear Mr Ramsden
Thank you for your email regarding your request for an internal review.
I can confirm that your review request was received on 6 July 2020 and is
receiving attention under our reference IR2020/26853.
There is no statutory deadline for responding to internal review requests.
However, in line with the Information Commissioner’s guidelines and the
2018 FOI Code of Practice, we aim to complete internal reviews within 20
working days.
Yours sincerely
Information Rights Unit | Correspondence and Information Rights | HM
Treasury, 1 Horse Guards Road, London, SW1A 2HQ [1]www.gov.uk/hm-treasury
Dear Mr Ramsden
Please find attached a letter in response to your Internal Review request.
Yours sincerely
Information Rights Unit | HM Treasury, 1 Horse Guards Road, London, SW1A
2HQ [1]www.gov.uk/hm-treasury
This email and any files transmitted with it are intended solely for the
use of the individual(s) to whom they are addressed. If you are not the
intended recipient and have received this email in error, please notify
the sender and delete the email. This footnote also confirms that our
email communications may be monitored to ensure the secure and effective
operation of our systems and for other lawful purposes, and that this
email has been swept for malware and viruses.
References
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