Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what criteria are used to evaluate whether Government-owned land and property should be made available for purchase.
Where a Government asset no longer serves a public purpose, or that purpose can be
more efficiently realised through its transfer to private or non-government hands, a
Government Department or Arm’s Length Body may choose to sell that asset
The disposal of individual sites is a matter for each Department or Body. It is the role of the
Accounting Officer to ensure this represents value for money and is achieved in line with the Green Book, Managing Public Money and the Guide for Disposal of Surplus Land.
Departments are expected to identify land as surplus where it is no longer required for operational
purposes. Managing Public Money states that Departments should dispose of surplus sites within 3
years. In 2017 the Office of Government Property published the Guide for the Disposal of Surplus
Land, providing detailed guidance on how to plan for and execute land disposals
As part of the Government Estate Strategy 2018, the Office of Government is leading on a
Government commitment to release £5 billion land and property in 2015 - 2020.