Guide

Writing Financial Recommendations for Cabinet and Joint Minister Papers

This Technical Guide is intended to help users prepare papers containing financial recommendations. The formats used are designed to meet Cabinet Office requirements for recommendations being considered by Cabinet (refer to Drafting financial recommendations steps at Financial implications in Cabinet papers (CabGuide) on the DPMC website) and by Ministers, to ensure that information presented to them follows a consistent style and format.

Agencies may prefer to download and use the Word version of the Technical Guide, as this will enable copy and paste of text and/or tables from relevant worked examples where helpful in the construction of their financial recommendations.

The Technical Guide was updated in December 2023. For details about changes since the previous version (November 2021) see What's New? on page 4.

Contents#

What’s New?#

Introduction#

  • About this Guide
  • Why have financial recommendations?
  • How to use this Guide
  • Financial recommendations module in CFISnet

Essential Elements for Financial Recommendations#

How to Write Financial Recommendations#

  • Seven steps in writing financial recommendations
  • Step 3: Impact on the operating balance and net debt
  • Step 4: Supplementary Estimates and Imprest Supply
  • Step 5: Impact on Budget allowances and contingencies
  • Numbering of recommendations

Annex A: Anatomy of Financial Recommendation Tables#

Annex B: Examples of Typical Financial Recommendations#

  • Example 1 – Single baseline change to give effect to a policy decision, requiring establishment of a new appropriation
  • Example 2 – Operating and capital funding in two different Votes to give effect to a policy decision
  • Example 3 – Policy decision involving partial cost recovery
  • Example 4 – Operating and capital funding for two initiatives that affect two Votes
  • Example 5 – Expense and/or capital transfers within an appropriation across financial years (ECTs)
  • Example 6A – In-principle expense and/or capital transfers within an appropriation across financial years (IPECTs)
  • Example 6B – Early confirmation of in-principle expense and/or capital transfers (IPECTs)
  • Example 7 – Retention of underspends (RoUs) where approval is sought prior to or at March Baseline Update
  • Example 8 – Retention of underspends (RoUs) where approval is sought afterMarch Baseline Update
  • Example 9 – Front-loading of spending (FLoS)
  • Example 10A – Fiscally neutral adjustments (FNAs) within a Vote
  • Example 10B – Fiscally neutral adjustments (FNAs) within a Vote, funded from third-party revenue (departmental)
  • Example 10C – Fiscally neutral adjustments (FNAs) within a Vote, funded from third-party revenue (non-departmental)
  • Example 11 – Fiscally neutral adjustments (FNAs) between Votes
  • Example 12 – Changes in revenue source for a departmental output
  • Example 13 – Changes to Crown revenue or capital receipts
  • Example 14 – Specifying baselines beyond the forecast period
  • Example 15A – Amending a title and/or scope statement before an appropriation has been spent from
  • Example 15B – Amending a title and/or scope statement after an appropriation has been spent from
  • Example 15C – Spending decisions affecting the current financial year after Supplementary Estimates have closed

Annex C: Financial Recommendations for Multi-year Appropriations (MYAs)#

  • Example 16 – Establishing a new MYA
  • Example 17 – Converting an existing annual appropriation into an MYA

Annex D: Financial Recommendations for Multi-Category Appropriations (MCAs)#

  • Example 18 – Establishing a new MCA
  • Example 19 – Changes to amount of an existing category of an MCA
  • Example 20A – Adding a category to an MCA, funded from new funding
  • Example 20B – Adding a category to an MCA, funded from existing amount of the MCA

Annex E: Financial Recommendations for Permanent Legislative Authorities (PLAs)#

  • Example 21A – Changes in appropriation relating to factors outside of Ministers’ control and where permanent legislative authority exists
  • Example 21B – Changes in appropriation in response to a discretionary policy decision and where permanent legislative authority exists

Annex F: Financial Recommendations for Revenue Dependent Appropriations (RDAs)#

  • Example 22 – Establishing a new RDA

Annex G: Financial Recommendations for Capital#

  • Example 23A – Capital injections to departments with no associated operating implications
  • Example 23B – Capital injections to departments with associated operating implications
  • Example 24 – Non-departmental capital expenditure

Annex H: Capital and Operating Swaps and Voluntary Capital Withdrawals#

  • Example 25A – Operating to capital swaps within a single financial year
  • Example 25B – Operating to capital swaps where reductions in operating expenses are ongoing
  • Example 26A – Capital to operating swaps within a single financial year
  • Example 26B – Capital to operating swaps where increases in operating expenses are ongoing
  • Example 27 – Voluntary capital withdrawals

Annex I: Financial Recommendations for Retention of Departmental Operating Surplus#

  • Example 28 – Requests for retention of surplus

Annex J: Financial Recommendations for Tagged Contingencies#

  • Example 29A – Establishing a tagged contingency
  • Example 29B – Drawing down a tagged contingency