Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Twentieth Report - Whole of Government Accounts 2019–20
Public Accounts Committee
HC 31
Published 14 October 2022
Recommendations
8
Acknowledged
Throughout the course of the 2019–20 accounts preparation process, the Treasury repeatedly underestimated how long...
Recommendation
Throughout the course of the 2019–20 accounts preparation process, the Treasury repeatedly underestimated how long it would take to produce the WGA; missing both 11 Public Accounts Committee, Report of session: Whole of Government Accounts 2018–19, 22 January 2021 12 …
Read more
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.
HM Treasury
View Details →
9
Acknowledged
The Treasury has laid out its aims for delivery of the 2020–21 and 2021–22 accounts,...
Recommendation
The Treasury has laid out its aims for delivery of the 2020–21 and 2021–22 accounts, setting target dates for publication of March 2023 and November 2023 respectively. This gives the Treasury less than 10 months from publication of the 2019–20 …
Read more
Government Response Summary
The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation, acknowledging the unlikelihood of achieving the planned March 2023 publication date and stating they are revisiting the timetable and will write to the Committee with a long term recovery strategy.
HM Treasury
View Details →
Conclusions (2)
1
Conclusion
Acknowledged
Based on the Whole of Government Accounts (WGA) for the year ended 31 March 2020, we took evidence from HM Treasury (the Treasury) on 8 June 2022.1 The WGA is a unique document which provides the most complete and accurate picture available of the UK public sector finances.2 It is …
Government Response Summary
The Treasury is revisiting the timetable for the 2020-21 account and future cycles and will write to the Committee setting out a long term recovery strategy to strengthen discipline within the system and investing in specialist project management support and increasing the size of the WGA team.
7
Conclusion
Acknowledged
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 …
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.