HM Treasury Ministers and officials are in constant contact with colleagues in BIS on economic policy matters including those activities designed to tackle the recession.
The National Economic Council is a full Cabinet Committee introduced in October 2008 to provide a new approach to managing economic policies across Government in the context of the immense challenges created by recent global financial and economic uncertainties.
The Chancellor and the First Secretary of State—as well as other HMT and BIS Ministers—are members of the National Economic Council, which meets frequently to assess the implications of the ongoing challenges in the financial markets for the wider economy, at both a global and national level.
In addition, both HM Treasury and BIS are jointly responsible for public service agreement 1 (PSA 1)—to raise the productivity of the UK economy. This mechanism provides a forum for coordinating action across member departments.