Recommendation 17

HM Treasury explained that it told accounting officers that throughout the pandemic they remained responsible for assuring themselves that public money was being properly spent, for applying the principles of Managing public money and for accounting to Parliament for their spending.24 HM Treasury considers that Managing public money has worked well as a framework over the pandemic, with the principles within it having proved to be enduring, and the framework having the flexibility and agility to respond to the pandemic.25 When quizzed over the increased use of accounting officer directions over the pandemic, HM Treasury responded the directions enabled accounting officers to set out publicly the financial challenges they were facing. It has concluded that the accounting officer direction process worked well in supporting rapid decision making, and that it was the appropriate mechanism for accounting officers to raise their concerns.26 It added that over the pandemic there had been closer decision-making between ministers and officials, which had sped up and improved the quality of decisions.27