Supplementary Estimate of Income and Expenditure of the Wales Audit Office

The Public Audit (Wales) Act 2013 received Royal Assent on 29 April 2013. The Act continued the office of the Auditor General for Wales and created a new body known as the Wales Audit Office. It also sets out accountability and governance arrangements relating to the Auditor General for Wales and the Wales Audit Office.

On 16 July 2013, the Business Committee agreed proposals to amend Standing Orders to delegate some of the functions in the Act to a responsible committee. The proposals also amended the functions of the Public Accounts Committee so as to remove those which relate to the oversight of the Wales Audit Office and Auditor General and delegate them instead to the ‘responsible committee’. Business Committee agreed on 1 October 2013 to delegate these functions to the Finance Committee. The functions delegated to the Finance Committee include scrutinising the Wales Audit Office annual estimate of income and expenditure. This has ensured separation from the Public Accounts Committee’s oversight role of the Auditor General for Wales. Prior to this decision, the Public Accounts Committee scrutinised the Wales Audit Office annual estimate of income and expenditure.