VerbatimParliament, as it happens

Public Sector: Procurement

Asked by Grahame MorrisLabourCabinet OfficeTabled Answered 28 April 2026UIN 129093

The question

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Government’s objective of delivering “the biggest wave of insourcing for a generation”, which specific previous wave of insourcing the Government is using as a comparator, and what assessment it has made of the timing and scale of that wave.

Answered by Chris Ward

The Government’s policy of delivering the highest wave of insourcing in a generation reflects a clear commitment in Labour’s ‘Make Work Pay’ agenda and will see an end to the previous administration’s policy of outsourcing by default.

Central to this is the introduction of a Public Insourcing Test, as announced on 26 March, which will see all Government departments assess if services can be better delivered in-house. Alongside this, departments will produce and publish robust insourcing strategies.

Detailed guidance will be published in the updated Sourcing Playbook this summer, and my officials have been engaging across Government to ensure the implementation of both the Public Interest Test and insourcing strategies can commence rapidly.

Verbatim has judged this answer against the question that was actually asked — answered, partly answered, or evaded. Sign in to see the verdict →

Open this question in Verbatim →

Every written question, searchable

155,000 questions tabled since the election, with the answer each department gave — and the ones still unanswered, with the clock running. Free to search.

Search written questions →Read on Verbatim