Damning report on public finances
Thursday 2nd July 2009, 2:56PM BST.
Comptroller and Auditor General Chris Swinson
A CULTURE of poor financial record keeping across the States has assisted departments in ‘cooking the books’, a damning report on the management of public finances has concluded.
The official report by Chris Swinson, the Comptroller and Auditor General, amounts to a catalogue of stinging criticisms about how taxpayers’ money is shared out and spent.
He says that departments have been slow to take full advantage of new computer technology that has already been installed and that the Treasury department has too few able staff.
‘As an example, for the States as whole, the time horizon for most financial planning is the end of the next financial year, which is too short in a time when many decisions affect periods many years away and when culture change programmes may take a number of years to take effect,’ Mr Swinson says.
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Well no surprise there then!!! just confirms what we have known all along.
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The financial management of the public purse, both Conservative and Labour is light years ahead of Jersey. Rolling budgets allow surplus (savings) to be rolled over into the next financial year, rather than frittered.
Chris Swinson tells it as it is. Take heed you Ministers.
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What a sad indictment, where were those we relied on to look after our money, yes our money not their money, could it be that the notions of “Money coming out of our ears,and a job for life no matter how much you screw up.combined with a “They’re all doing it so why shouldn’t I” attitude led to this sorry state,If the private sector wouldn’t stand for it then we expect no more from those with loads of perks and security,also I acknowledge the good guys and would not want to tar everyone with the same brush,but to change the situation the head needs to be cut off the snake.
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So the Comptroller and Auditor general has spotted “Short-termism” is a problem at the States Treasury? You don’t suppose that has something to do with annual bonus payments for performance do you Mr Swinson?If so you have hit the nail on the head and identified precisely the problem that has brought the Banking World to it’s knees.Where capital projects are concerned a five or ten year view is not unrealistic. Ah, but that may only produce a performance bonus of significance well after those involved at the outset have retired or “Moved on”.Much better then to take an annual view and “Muddle along”year to year, making sure anything which might threaten that annual position is stamped on heavily no matter how good an idea or cause it happens to be.As for the UK system being far more efficient with “Rolling Budgets” yes an excellent idea, but am I alone in having seen a last minute panic to spend the remaining budget pot just prior to year end in the UK as well as here?
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