Non-departmental public body
In the United Kingdom, non-departmental public body (NDPB) is a classification applied by the Cabinet Office, Treasury, the Scottish Government, and the Northern Ireland Executive to public sector organisations that have a role in the process of national government but are not part of a government department.[1] NDPBs carry out their work largely independently from ministers and are accountable to the public through Parliament; however, ministers are responsible for the independence, effectiveness, and efficiency of non-departmental public bodies in their portfolio.[2]
The term includes the four types of NDPB (executive, advisory, tribunal, and independent monitoring boards) but excludes public corporations and public broadcasters (BBC, Channel 4, and S4C).[3][4]
Types of body
The UK Government classifies bodies into four main types. The Scottish Government also has a fifth category: NHS bodies.[5]
Advisory NDPBs
These bodies consist of boards which advise ministers on particular policy areas. They are often supported by a small secretariat from the parent department, and any expenditure is paid for by that department.
Executive NDPBs
These bodies usually deliver a particular public service and are overseen by a board rather than ministers. Appointments are made by ministers following the Code of Practice of the Commissioner for Public Appointments. They employ their own staff and allocate their own budgets.
Tribunal NDPBs
These bodies have jurisdiction over an area of the
Independent monitoring boards
These bodies were formerly known as "boards of visitors" and are responsible for the state of prisons, their administration, and the treatment of prisoners. The Home Office is responsible for their costs and has to note all expenses.
Contrast with executive agencies, non-ministerial departments and quangos
NDPB differ from
NDPBs are sometimes referred to as
History, numbers and powers
In March 2009 there were nearly 800 public bodies that were sponsored by the UK Government.
These appointed bodies performed a large variety of tasks, for example health trusts, or the Welsh Development Agency, and by 1992 were responsible for some 25% of all government expenditure in the UK. According to the Cabinet Office their total expenditure for the financial year 2005–06 was £167 billion.[7]
Criticism
Critics argued that the system was open to abuse as most NDPBs had their members directly appointed by
This concern led to the formation of a Committee on Standards in Public Life[8] (the Nolan Committee) which first reported in 1995 and recommended the creation of a "public appointments commissioner" to make sure that appropriate standards were met in the appointment of members of NDPBs. The Government accepted the recommendation, and the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments[9] was established in November 1995.
While in opposition, the Labour Party promised to reduce the number and power of NDPBs.[10][11] The use of NDPBs continued under the Labour government in office from 1997 to 2010, though the political controversy associated with NDPBs in the mid-1990s for the most part died away.
In 2010 the UK's Conservative-Liberal coalition published a review of NDPBs recommending closure or merger of nearly two hundred bodies, and the transfer of others to the private sector.[12] This process was colloquially termed the "bonfire of the quangos".[13]
Classification in national accounts
NDPBs are classified under code S.13112 of the European System of Accounts (ESA.95). However, Statistics UK does not break out the detail for these bodies and they are consolidated into General Government (S.1311).[14]
See also
- Executive agency
- Non-ministerial government department
- Quango
- Regulatory agency
- Scottish public bodies
- Statutory agency
- Statutory corporation
- Welsh Government sponsored bodies
References
- ^ "Classification of public bodies: information and guidance". GOV.UK. p. 13. Retrieved 2021-02-12.
- ^ "2". Public Bodies a guide for departments: Policy and characteristics (PDF). UK Government. 2006. p. 2.
- ^ Cabinet Office (2007) Public Bodies 2007 (from the UK Government Web Archive), p. 6
- ISBN 0-582-43807-1., pp. 291–292.
- ^ "Public bodies: Public body information: NDPB Categories". Scottish Government. Retrieved 10 September 2014.
- ^ "Public bodies, 2009" (PDF). Cabinet Office. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 October 2011. Retrieved 10 September 2009.
- PDF)
- ^ "Committee on Standards in Public Life". Public-standards.gov.uk. Retrieved 2014-04-01.
- ^ Limited, sapere audemus. "Homepage". webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 9 December 2008. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
- ^ "Mark Thomas story on Quangos". 2002-12-12. Archived from the original on July 4, 2008. Retrieved 2014-04-01.
- ^ "UK's 'useless' quangos under fire". BBC News. 11 February 2005. Retrieved 10 September 2014.
- ^ List of NDPBs, Cabinet Office Archived November 7, 2014, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "'Bonfire of the quangos' revealed". Channel 4 News. 14 October 2010. Retrieved 10 September 2014.
- ^ "[ARCHIVED CONTENT] UK Government Web Archive - The National Archives".