Agenda and minutes

1.1 The Chair welcomed Committee Members and members of the public to the first meeting of the Finance Committee in the fourth Assembly.

Jane Hutt AM, Minister for Finance

Andrew Jeffreys, Head of Strategic Budgeting -Strategic Planning, Finance & Performance - SPF&P

Jeff Andrews, Specialist Policy Adviser, SPF&P

Scrutiny of Welsh Government

2.1 The Committee welcomed Jane Hutt AM, Minister for Finance; Andrew Jeffreys, Head of Strategic Budgeting -Strategic Planning, Finance & Performance - SPF&P; and Jeff Andrews, Specialist Policy Adviser, SPF&P.

2.2 The Committee scrutinised the Minister.

2.3 The Minister agreed to provide:

·         Further details on revisions in the accounting treatment, which resulted in a reduction of £92.4 million in relation to the provision of student loans.

·         Further details on the transfer of £18.6 million from DEFRA to the Welsh Government in relation to animal health and welfare.

·         A breakdown of the consequentials of the UK budget 2011, detailing the policy decisions from which they resulted, and including the indicative figures of the revenue and capital consequentials for the remaining years of the spending review.

·         A breakdown, by region, of the costs of the 2011 election and comparison with the regional costs of previous Assembly elections, including the costs incurred by the referendum in 2011.

·         Details of the real term reductions in revenue and capital in the supplementary budget’s indicative figures for the next two years.

·         Further details on the timescales of the allocation of the Centrally Retain Capital (CRC) Fund.

3.1 The Committee discussed the key issues arising from their scrutiny of the Supplementary Budget 2011-12.

To view the meeting transcript, click here