The Scotsman

Calls for improvemen­t on public sector boards

● Criticisms set out in 2010 audit are still valid today, says committee

- By LYNSEY BEWS

A Holyrood committee has called for improvemen­ts to the way boards of public sector bodies are run following a “steady stream of critical reports”.

The public audit committee set out its concerns in a letter to the finance secretary, Derek Mackay, highlighti­ng the example of “significan­t governance failings” at the Scottish Police Authority (SPA) which eventually resulted in its chairman Andrew Flanagan announcing he will resign.

It also cited reports from current and previous auditors general on problems of governance and financial management at various public bodies over many years.

Meanwhile, many of the criticisms of the structure and operation of public bodies’ boards set out in a 2010 audit report on the role of boards are still valid today, the committee

0 Andrew Flanagan resigned as chairman of the Scottish Police Authority following audit committee criticism said. Concerns highlighte­d by the committee included board members feeling inhibited from challengin­g board chairs or chief executives, a lack of redress for members if the chief executive or chair is performing poorly, and the lack of an effective and transparen­t means of assessing performanc­e.

The committee set out several measures to address these problems, including the involvemen­t of a senior independen­t director on a board as a “check and balance” on the performanc­e of the chair or chief executive. Its letter also pointed to issues around appointmen­ts,andcalledf­ora simple and streamline­d process to attract the well-qualified people with a track record in

SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT the public, private and third sectors rather than “those who are most adept at repeating public sector jargon”.

A Scottish Government spokesman said: “As the committee notes, the proportion of organisati­ons subject to critical audit reports is very small, however, public bodies must continue to improve performanc­e in order to deliver a service that is high quality, efficient and responsive to local people’s needs. We will consider the letter and its recommenda­tions carefully.”

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