Cluttered scrutiny system needs radical reform, say Scots councils

3 May 07
The system of scrutinising public services in Scotland is not 'fit for purpose' and needs to be radically reformed, council leaders and chief officials have concluded.

04 May 2007

The system of scrutinising public services in Scotland is not 'fit for purpose' and needs to be radically reformed, council leaders and chief officials have concluded.

They have told a review committee headed by Professor Lorne Crerar that there are too many bodies scrutinising local government 'with no unifying rationale or purpose, methodology, frequency of inspection, reporting arrangements or size of budget'.

The criticism of the current system of scrutiny and regulation is made by the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and the Society of Local Authority Chief Executives and Senior Managers in a submission to the committee. Crerar is due to report in June to the post-election government.

Cosla and Solace believe that the landscape of external scrutiny is cluttered and results in confusion and duplication. They say not enough emphasis is put on supporting improvement or encouraging innovation.

The submission argues for a more corporate and integrated approach and says there is a strong case for streamlining the current arrangements to reduce the costs and the burdens on councils.

The document adds: 'We have made it clear that we believe that the current arrangements are not “fit for purpose” in terms of providing an effective or efficient framework for achieving this objective. As a result we believe the review needs to be forward looking and lead to significant reform.'

Cosla strategic director Jon Harris told Public Finance this week that it was felt the system of scrutiny also needed to be focused more on the customer and citizen.

He said that former finance minister Tom McCabe, who commissioned the Crerar review, or his successor, should be prepared to grasp the nettle. 'I don't think there is any political variation between the big parties on this issue, but it's a question of how radical they are prepared to be,' Harris added.

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