Under the move, Graham Pendlebury, director of environment and international at DfT, becomes chair of the Collaborative Category Board.

Within DfT, Mr Pendlebury has responsibility for improving the environmental performance of the transport sector, particularly from road vehicles; strengthening DfT's influence overseas; promoting the better regulation agenda within the Department; and overseeing DfT interests in planning policy reforms. He is a member of DfT’s central Strategy Committee, and chairs several programme boards and inter-departmental committees. He is also a member of the Audit Committee of the Government Car and Despatch Agency.

Speaking about his chairmanship role, Mr Pendlebury said: 'Procurement is an important lever in delivering policy objectives, and that’s why we need to make the most of this opportunity to work collaboratively across central and local government to further improve the cost and carbon efficiency of public sector fleets.'

The OGC says that the DfT’s involvement comes at a critical time in category management for public sector fleets. In a statement, it said: 'An intensifying requirement for efficiency savings means not only a renewed focus on ensuring the public sector is sourcing its vehicles as effectively as possible through collaborative framework agreements, but also that it reaches a new level of maturity on fleet management – from implementing whole-life cost models, demand management strategies, maximising vehicle utilisation and driving down carbon emissions.'