Gardiner calls for Audit Enforcer Appointment
Sam Gardiner MLA, Ulster Unionist Assemblyman for Upper Bann, who has been appointed Deputy Chairman of the Assembly’s Audit Committee has called for an audit enforcer post to be created to check that civil servants properly implement recommendations of the Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee.
The Audit Committee is one of the Assembly’s statutory committees and oversees the work of the Northern Ireland Audit Office and the Northern Ireland Comptroller and Auditor General.
Mr Gardiner commented :
“The role of the Audit Committee in supervising the expenses of the Audit Office is important and I intend to pursue ways in which the work of the Audit Office and the Comptroller and Auditor General can be made even more effective. One aspect of the work of the Audit Office needs to be expanded, in my view. That is the issue of follow up audits one year after the Public Accounts Committee considers a matter. At present these follow up checks, on whether a Department has complied with Public Accounts Committee reports, are supervised by the Department of Finance and to my mind that looks like one set of civil servants deciding whether or not another set of civil servants has done their job. That is just too cosy.”
“I would like to see an independent commissioner appointed within the Audit Office as part of the Audit Office team to do a follow up check one year later and see if a Department has fully complied with Public Accounts Committee recommendations. This would represent a significant increase in public accountability and we must procure the additional funds to enable this democratic check to be developed.”
“To my mind the Audit Office is one of the most important democratic safeguards the people have and I intend to see it gets the means to do the job on behalf of the people even more effectively.”