Committee of Public Accounts

David Kilminster

Committee of Public Accounts

• Public Accounts Committee (PAC)

• The Role of PAC

• Scope of Inquiries

• Publishing Reports

• Resources and Support

• Creating Impact and Influence

The Role of Committees

• A large part of the work of the House of Commons and the House of Lords takes place in committees, made up of MPs or Lords.

• Committees consider policy issues, scrutinise the work and expenditure of the government, and examine proposals for primary and secondary legislation.

The Role of PAC

•PAC is appointed by the House of Commons to examine:

•"the accounts showing the appropriation of the sums granted to Parliament to meet the public expenditure, and of such other accounts laid before Parliament as the Committee may think fit" (Standing Order No 148).

•The Committee does not consider the formulation or merits of policy (which fall within the scope of departmental select committees);

•It focuses on value-for-money criteria which are based on economy, effectiveness and efficiency.

About PAC

•PAC is one of the most important committees in Parliament.

•It is comprised of 14 members of Parliament.

•One of busiest - approx. 60 hearings a year, about two a week.

•Each hearing lasts about three hours.

•The Committee tends to hear evidence from officials rather than ministers.

•Convention is that the Chair is a member of the Opposition.

•It agrees one or two reports every week from previous sessions.

•Chair constantly in the media – probably has the most media coverage of all committees.

Scope of Inquiries

•Main work of the Public Accounts Committee is the examination of the reports made by the National Audit Office on value for money (VFM) studies of the economy, efficiency and effectiveness with which government departments and other bodies have used their resources to further their objectives. 

•About two-thirds of these reports are taken up by the Committee, either by taking oral evidence or by sending written questions to government departments. 

•The Committee's objective is to draw lessons from past successes and failures which can be applied to future activity by the department or more generally.

•The Committee focuses on value-for-money criteria which are based on:

- economy: the minimising of costs of resources used for an activity, having regard to appropriate quality

- efficiency: the relationship between the output in terms of goods, services or other results and the resources used to produce them

- effectiveness: the relationship between the intended impact and the actual impact of an activity or product

What is Examined?

•Stewardship of public funds etc. including:

–Regularity: the requirement for all expenditure and receipts to be dealt with in accordance with legislation authorising them, any delegated authority and the rules of government accounting

–Propriety: the requirement that expenditure and receipts should be dealt with in accordance with Parliament's intentions and the principles of Parliamentary control, and in accordance with the values and behaviour appropriate to the public sector

–value for money

–effective management systems

•Compliance

–with the law

–with government policies and initiatives

–with public expectations of proper conduct.

•Performance

–against objectives and targets

–in delivering acceptable levels of service to the public.

Overview of Inquiry Process

•The Committee chooses the subject of inquiry and announces the terms of reference in a press notice

•Written evidence is sought from interested parties

•Oral evidence is heard from key witnesses

•Study visits may be conducted at home and abroad

•The draft report is considered, amended, agreed and published

•The government replies within 60 days

•The report may be debated

•Follow up action

Recent Reforms

•Recommendations from the Reform of the House of Commons Committee 2009 (chaired by former MP, Dr Tony Wright);

•Majority of select committee Chairs now elected by fellow MPs including the Public Accounts Committee. 

•Elections for select committees enables MPs to take a more active, independent role in holding the government to account

•Stronger and more autonomous committees rather than owing their position to the patronage of the whips

•Committee Chairs now have security of tenure for the duration of a parliament

Role of PAC Chair

•Chair of PAC has few formal powers

•Exception is their casting vote in the event of a tie

•They play a key role in leading the committee’s work and setting the agenda

•PAC has a high profile. Chair is a powerful politician and can raise the profile of issues in which the committee has an interest

•If witnesses or departments are not cooperative, the Chair can bring this to public attention e.g. Google

Other Committee Roles

•Staff–led by the Clerk of the Committee normally has three or four other staff

members and researchers if necessary.

–the committee staff make the administrative arrangements for meetings and visits, prepare briefing material and draft the reports and other papers.

–works closely with Chair in managing the committee’s programme of inquiries

–gather and analyse evidence, advise on lines of inquiry & questioning and help in the drafting of reports

–contract with “specialist advisers” with specialist knowledge in a particular area, to advise on technical matters concerning an inquiry.

–liaise with the National Audit Office

National Audit Office•NAO scrutinises public spending on behalf of Parliament and totally independent of

Government.

•They audit the accounts of all government departments and other public bodies.

•They report to Parliament on the economy, efficiency and effectiveness with which government bodies have used public money.

•NAO has over 800 staff, two main functions

- audit all government accounts - over £1 trillion of income and expenditure.

- supported Public Accounts Committee in its scrutiny of the government.

•Each inquiry NAO provide a report, approx. 45 pages in length, and a brief, approximately 10 pages in length - includes suggested questions.

•NAO provide a work in progress page to alert journalists to issues that would be coming up further down the line.

•NAO assists PAC by drafting reports with recommendations to government and following up on these recommendations.

Reports

•When the committee finishes taking written and oral evidence, a draft report is prepared for the Chair by the committee staff.

•The committee may go through several drafts of a report, discussing it informally and making changes, before approving it.

•If there is strong difference of opinion, the committee may vote on amendments to the report.

•Results of votes are included in the minutes published with the report.

•Most reports are agreed by consensus without the need for a vote.

•On rare occasions when consensus cannot be achieved either by discussion or vote, the members dissenting from the majority view may produce a ‘minority report’.

Government Response

•Government departments are expected to reply to reports within 60 days, unless a longer period has been agreed.

•The reply normally takes the form of a memorandum to the committee, which is published by the committee.

•Convention that ministers do not criticise conclusions outright.

•Department of Health and the Treasury currently receive most recommendations from the committee.

•Areas most covered are in programme and service delivery, or better ways of doing projects.

•Recommendations in the field of governance and accountability also common.

Report Release

•Once report agreed it is released to the media under a 48-hour embargo.

•Media office take lots of calls from journalists in advance of publication to provide quotes and give clarifications or further information.

•Also ask the Chair to record interviews in advance so that the report can get the best coverage.

•Reports are published at midnight to assist the print media with their deadlines for publication.

•Chair of PAC also tends to conduct interviews on the morning that report is published - level of success dependent on media interest.

•If it says government generally performing satisfactorily, it tends not get much coverage. Severe criticisms tend to get a lot of coverage!

Follow Up

•The NAO provided assistance in following up the Committee’s recommendations with government.

•Recommendations can not be brushed aside, though understanding if Government shows it addresses recommendations in a different way.

•NAO assess whether the government’s response is relevant or adequate.

•NAO also look into whether another value for money study is necessary.

•Each study costs approx. £200,000 and takes between six and eight months.

The Treasury

•The Treasury has to sign off all government responses to the Public Accounts Committee.

•The Permanent Secretary at the Treasury also has to consider the speed and quality of government responses.

•The Treasury works with the NAO to achieve this goal.

•Approx. 82% of all PAC recommendations are accepted.

•Recommendations have cross-party support and are seen as practical measures required from government.

•The NAO has a target of recovering ten times its running costs through savings made as a result of recommendations.

Civil Service

•Each government department has an audit committee, which is run by a non-executive director.

•They act as a critical friend to the department. The NAO and PAC require the audit committees to have a budget.

•All departments also have a Parliamentary Branch charged with managing the department's relations with the House.

•Parliamentary Branch co-ordinates briefing for a Minister in preparation for an appearance before a committee and answers to any written questions before they are sent to Ministers' Private Offices for approval.

Special Advisers

• The Government has access to a range of science and engineering advice, from both within and outside of government departments who play a critical role in providing that advice e.g. departmental Chief Scientific Advisers (CSAs).

• It is a difficult role to fulfil. Although appointed as civil servants and working within the department, they have to stand at arm's length and challenge departmental decision making to ensure that their evidence has informed the decision making process.

External Advisers - Think Tanks

• Think tanks are public policy research, analysis & engagement institutions. They generate policy oriented research, analysis and advice on domestic and international issues.

• They aim to provide policymakers and the public with information need to make decisions about public policy issues. They may be affiliated or independent institutions.

• Think tanks obtain their funding from various sources, e.g. grants from charities, foundations, trusts etc, or subscriptions or donations from members, interest groups and other bodies.

• There are many groups based at Westminster, employing academics & policy experts from across the political spectrum.

Think Tanks

• Adam Smith Institute: politically independent, free-market economic & social policies think tank. Seeks to pioneer practical initiatives to inject choice and competition into public services, extend personal freedom, reduce taxes, cut regulation, and cut government waste.

• The Institute for Public Policy Policy Research is the first outside group to be allowed to develop policy alongside civil servants. IPPR was formed in the late 80s by academics. It looks at future reform of the civil service and examine administrations in other countries for best practice.

• Fabian Society: concerned with development of political ideas and public policy. Analysing the key challenges facing UK and industrialised world in a changing society and global economy. It is affiliated to the Labour Party but is editorially and organisationally independent.

• Institute for Employment Studies: centre for research and evidence-based consultancy in employment, labour market and human resource policy and practice. It is not-for-profit, its activities being funded through research and consultancy commissions, and from its corporate membership programme.

• Institute for Fiscal Studies: promote effective economic and social policies by understanding their impact on individuals, families, businesses and government finances. specialise in economic analysis of policy, bridging gap between academic research and issues of practical policy design or evaluation.

Parliamentary Clerks

• The Clerk’s Department is responsible for providing advice and services to the House, the Speaker, the committees and their Chairs and to individual members of the House.

• The Clerks advise on how the business of the House and committees may be conducted properly within the rules laid down by the House.

• Purely procedural work accounts for about a third of the Clerks' posts, the remainder, and the majority of posts at other grades, being involved with the servicing of select committees.

• Each civil service department also has a Parliamentary Clerk to liaise with Parliament.

Parliamentary Library

•The House of Commons Library's research and information service provides a specialist impartial information and briefing service for MPs, their staff, committees and staff of the House.

•It supports the House in its main functions of making laws and holding the government to account.

•It holds and maintains 60,000 printed books and journals as well as electronic resources and newspapers,

•Its staff produce a wide range of briefing material and other services, including confidential answers to enquiries on the full range of subjects of interest to MPs and committees.

Other Support in Parliament

• The Journal Office produces the authoritative record of proceedings and provides procedural advice and services.

• The Committee Directorate provides secretariat, advice, research and administrative services for each committee.

• The Serjeant at Arms Directorate has operational responsibility for access & security as well as ceremonial functions.

• The Official Report Directorate is responsible for providing reports of the proceedings of the House and committees.

• The Broadcasting Unit oversees the broadcasting and webcasting of Parliament and provides an audio-visual archive service.

• The Office of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards advises on standards and privileges.

Parliamentary Outreach Service• Since 2009 it has spread awareness of the work, processes and

relevance of the institution of Parliament, encouraging greater engagement between the public and the House. Its work includes:

• delivering free training explaining the work of Parliament promoting engagement with committee inquiries

• showing how the public can get involved with legislative scrutiny

• demonstrating Parliament's relevance to each part of the UK

• working in partnership with a range of organisations e.g. local community groups, businesses and national campaign networks.

Increasing Impact

•PAC is clear about what the issues are and what it wants done which is easier for both the media and the public to grasp as a story.

•Media officers promote role of Parliament as separate to government - shows it’s relevant and has role in scrutinising the government.

•Media relationship less adversarial than in government department’s media office - provide information to aid media scrutiny.

•Possible to watch PAC in action on TV, to see their interrogation of witnesses and to read the results of their inquiries in their reports.

•Almost every PAC report generates media interviews. The Chair of the PAC tended to be on the radio at least once a week.

•PAC’s profile and public understanding of role raised considerably in recent years due to the success of its reports and evidence sessions.