Trading fund

A trading fund is an executive agency, government department or part of a department, which has been established as such by means of a trading fund order made under the Government Trading Funds Act 1973. Although mainly used in the United Kingdom, the model has also been used in Hong Kong.

A trading fund can only be established with HM Treasury agreement. One may only be set up where more than 50% of the trading fund's revenue will consist of receipts in respect of goods and services provided by the trading fund, and where the responsible Minister and the Treasury are satisfied that the setting up of the trading fund will lead to "improved efficiency and effectiveness in management of operations".^[1]

The significance of a trading fund is that it has standing authority under the 1973 Act to use its receipts to meet its outgoings. Some trading funds have, as their main function, the collection and supply of information to both public and private sectors; others do not.

List of trading funds

Date of establishment as trading fund is shown:

United Kingdom

Current

• Companies House - 1 October 1991
• Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) - 1 July 2001
• Defence Support Group (DSG) - 1 April 2008
• Driver & Vehicle Agency (DVA) - 1 April 2007 (owned by the Northern Ireland Executive)
• Driving Standards Agency (DSA) - 1 April 1997
• FCO Services - 1 April 2008
• Government Procurement Service - 1 April 1991 (first known as the Buying Agency, then OGCbuying.solutions, then Buying Solutions)
• HM Land Registry - 1 April 1993
• Intellectual Property Office - 1 October 1991 (first known as the Patent Office)
• Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) - 1 April 2003
• Meteorological Office - 1 April 1996
• Ordnance Survey - 1 April 1999
• Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre - 1 April 1997
• Registers of Scotland - 1 April 1996 (owned by the Scottish Government)
• Royal Mint - 1 April 1975 (became holding entity of Royal Mint Ltd on 31 December 2009)
• United Kingdom Hydrographic Office (UKHO) - 1 April 1996
• Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) - 1 April 2003

Defunct

• Army Base Repair Organisation (ABRO) - 1 April 2002 (merged with DARA to form DSG on 1 April 2008)
• Central Office of Information (COI) - 1 April 1991 (abolished in March 2012)
• Chessington Computer Centre - 1 April 1993 (privatised in July 1996)
• Crown Suppliers - 1 April 1976 (first known as the Supplies Division of the Property Services Agency and abolished in March 1991)
• Defence Aviation Repair Agency (DARA) - 1 April 2001 (merged with ABRO to form DSG on 1 April 2008)
• Defence Evaluation and Research Agency (DERA) - 1 April 1995 (split into Dstl and Qinetiq on 1 July 2001)
• Defence Research Agency (DRA) - 1 April 1993 (became part of DERA on 1 April 1995)
• Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) - 1 April 2004 (trading fund status removed on 1 April 2011)
• Driver and Vehicle Testing Agency (DVTA) - 1 April 1996 (merged with Driver and Vehicle Licensing Northern Ireland to form DVA on 1 April 2007)
• Fire Service College - 1 April 1992 (privatised in February 2013)
• Forensic Science Service - 1 April 1999 (became government-owned company in December 2005)
• HM Stationery Office (HMSO) - 1 April 1980 (privatised as The Stationery Office in September 1996)
• Medicines Control Agency - 1 April 1993 (merged with Medical Devices Agency to form MHRA on 1 April 2003)
• NHS Estates - 1 April 1999 (abolished in September 2005)
• Royal Ordnance Factories - 1 July 1974 (privatised as Royal Ordnance in April 1987)
• Vehicle Inspectorate - 1 April 1991 (merged with Traffic Area Network to form VOSA on 1 April 2003)

Hong Kong

• Companies Registry - 1 August 1993
• Electrical and Mechanical Services - 1 August 1996
• Hongkong Post - 1 August 1995
• Land Registry - 1 August 1993
• Office of the Telecommunications Authority (OFTA) - 1 June 1995
• Sewage Services - 11 March 1994 (trading fund status removed on 31 March 1998)

Notes