C&AG's
Access to Bodies Spending Public Money
27. The C&AG audits all government departments
and executive agencies as well as the NHS Executive and the majority
of executive non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs), and as a
consequence has full access to the papers of these bodies. The
Companies Acts do not permit him to audit the 200 or so publicly
owned companies set up as non-departmental public bodies or owned
or overseen by government bodies. In addition the C&AG has
secured access to nearly all the non-departmental public bodies
which he does not audit and has access, guaranteed by statute,
to around 680 separate bodies in the NHS and around 2,000 higher
and further education institutions and grant-maintained schools.
28. Over recent years, different types of local bodies,
funded at arms length by central government departments and executive
NDPBs, have played an increasingly important part in delivering
government programmes. These bodies, some of which belong to the
private or voluntary sectors, receive about £15 billion per
annum in public funds. Although the C&AG has access to most
of these bodies, including, by agreement to Training and Enterprise
Councils, he does not have a right of access to housing associations
(now officially known as registered social landlords), although
these receive public funding of over £1 billion a year. Nor
does he have a guaranteed right of access to private firms delivering
government services under contract or to all final recipients
of Government and European Community grants. Lastly, although
the C&AG audits the Office of Passenger Rail Franchising which
is responsible for monitoring and managing the obligations to
provide passenger rail services contained in the franchise agreements
with operating companies, he does not have right of access to
Railtrack and the operating companies themselves.
29. The C&AG has recently achieved access in
two important new areas: first, to Camelot, the operator of the
National Lottery, and second, to the Royal Household which thus
allows him to examine property services and Royal travel. The
Commission welcomes this extension to his rights of access. However,
it believes that the rights of access of the C&AG need further
to be extended to provide him with access to housing associations;
contractors providing public functions and services under contract;
and Railtrack and train operating companies. In addition, the
European Court of Auditors, unlike the C&AG, has access to
all documents and information relating to the financial management
of the bodies subject to its inspection which includes all bodies
receiving amounts granted as aid by the European Community. It
is in the Commission's view unacceptable that the C&AG should
not enjoy at least equal powers of access.
30. Annexed to this Report is a note by the C&AG
on the areas to which he requires greater rights of access. The
Commission firmly believes that it is now time for the C&AG
to be granted the access he needs to enable him to provide
Parliament with greater assurance that public funds have been
used as Parliament intended, and with due concern for regularity
and value for money.
Visits
to the NAO
31. Commissioners visited the NAO's headquarters
building in Buckingham Palace Road in February and June 1997 for
informal briefings on VFM studies and the corporate and strategic
planning of the NAO. The Commission welcomes such opportunities
for discussions with the senior staff of the Office whose contribution
to the effective and thorough scrutiny of the Executive is so
important to the effectiveness of the Parliamentary system.
3 Seventh Report, HC567 (Session 1993-94), para 8;
Eighth Report, para12 Back
4
From 520 to 631 Back
5
Eighth Report, para 25. Back
6
Op cit, para 18 Back
7
See Cm 3693, HC 616 and HC 361 (Session 1997-98) Back
8
The Code for Fiscal Stability, March 1998, para 26 Back
