Achieving impacts

Helping the nation spend wisely

Achieving impacts

Achieving impacts

Ashley McDougall

Director of Parliamentary Relations, National Audit Office

June 2013

Achieving impacts

The accountability cycle

PAC Hearing

PAC Report and recommendations

Government response

Follow-up of recommendations

NAO Report

Achieving impacts

The accountability cycle

PAC Hearing

PAC Report and recommendations

Government response

Follow-up of recommendations

NAO Report

Achieving impacts

Timing of the accountability cycle

Hearing PAC ReportGovernment

response (plans)

Follow-up

Second Government

response

(actions)

6 weeks later

6 weeks later

1-3 years 12-18 months later

Achieving impacts

Follow-up• Committee actions

• Willing to use the profile of PAC to push for change• Letters to Accounting Officers• Questions in future hearings• Recalling witnesses

• National Audit Office actions• Advise Committee on quality of Departmental response

(Strong/Adequate/Weak)• Address through other value for money studies• Work with Departmental Audit Committees• Target financial savings

• HM Treasury• Very keen to simplify responses and speed-up replies

Achieving impacts

Outcomes of follow-up work• Clearer lines of accountability• Improved information on performance• 82% of Committee recommendations

accepted or partially accepted• NAO assessment that 67% of responses

were Strong/Adequate and 33% Weak • Financial impacts of £1.2 billion in 2012, 17:1

ratio of NAO costs (target was £677million, 10:1 ratio of costs)

Achieving impacts

The keys to achieving impacts

• Quality and clarity of recommendations• Written commitments• Validation of commitments• Transparent follow-up• Target to incentivise measurement of

impact