Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 15 December 2016 to Question 56783, how decisions on the allocation of monies from LIBOR fines between facilities based at MoD sites, MoD events and registered charities were made; and who in his Department was responsible for those decisions.

The commitment of LIBOR fines to 'support Armed Forces and Emergency Services charities and other related good causes that represent those that demonstrate the very best of values’ is subject to a robust governance process. This utilises grant making experts, the Charity Commission and the Government New Grants Advice Panel (NGAP) to ensure that appropriate due diligence is conducted on all applications for support. In addition the grant team consult relevant Government Departments and other Grant Making Bodies, such as The Heritage Lottery Fund.

This process satisfies the mandated requirements of the ‘Minimum Standards for Government Grants’ which were introduced following the report in to The Kids Company by the Parliamentary Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee (PACAC), which came into force on 1st December 2016. Each application is considered both on its individual merits and holistically for any impact across its particular sector. Once this process is complete, the assessment overview is passed to the Treasury and matched against the available funding, prior to final endorsement by both the Chief Secretary to the Treasury and the Chancellor of Exchequer.

The eligibility criteria for applying for funding was published on the GOV.UK website on 23 August 2016 and is repeated below:

‘to support Armed Forces and Emergency Services charities and other related good causes that represent those that demonstrate the very best of values.’