Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 7
7
Acknowledged
Timeliness is essential when gathering high-quality data needed to produce useful information; delays reduce the...
Conclusion
Timeliness is essential when gathering high-quality data needed to produce useful information; delays reduce the value and transparency of information in the WGA and diminish its potential to generate valuable insights.17 The published accounts are an important source for key stakeholders including Parliament, and major fiscal bodies such as the International Monetary Fund and Office for Budget Responsibility, and underlying data is used by HM Treasury to help manage the public finances. In order to fully exploit this potential, the information provided must be complete, accurate and timely.18
Government Response Summary
The Treasury is revisiting the timetable for the 2020-21 account and future cycles in light of the causes of the delays both this year and for 2019-20, and will write to the Committee setting out a long term recovery strategy that is realistic.
Government Response
Acknowledged
HM Government
Acknowledged
1.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Recommendation implemented 1.2 HM Treasury wrote to the Committee in October 2022 indicating that the planned March 2023 publication date for the 2020-21 Whole of Government Accounts (WGA) was unlikely to be achieved. The Treasury is revisiting the timetable for the 2020-21 account and future cycles in light of the causes of the delays both this year and for 2019-20. The Treasury will write to the Committee setting out a long term recovery strategy that is realistic and recognises the uncertainties and risks that are beyond the Treasury’s direct control. 1.3 The delay to WGA 2020-21 is driven principally by the late submission of data by components, and delays in audit work on component returns. Some lateness in submission was anticipated, but not the extent that materialised. This has delayed the start of work in 18 producing the account. The recovery strategy seeks to address this issue by strengthening discipline within the system, including by making timely WGA returns an explicit measure in the annual Accounting Officer financial assessment. In addition, the Treasury is investing in specialist project management support and increasing the size of the WGA team in order to enable work on multiple years of WGA simultaneously. This will increase the team’s capacity to performance manage the collection of WGA data for the following year, while the current year’s account is still being produced. This early collection of data will reduce the risk that late returns have a direct knock-on impact to the timing of the final account. The Treasury has been working closely with the National Audit Office to time future data collection in a window where they have capacity to audit the returns.