Although it is barely a year since auditor general Gareth Davies took up his role, Covid-19 has relegated that period to another age and reshaped his priorities for the watchdog’s activities.
Measures put in place by the government to help reduce the impact of the coronavirus pandemic have cost £124.3bn, according to the National Audit Office.
The framework governing capital investment by local authorities has been tested to breaking point by councils borrowing cheaply to invest in commercial property, according to a recent NAO report.
The updated code of audit practice will require auditors of local public bodies to provide “narrative-style” commentary, the public spending watchdog has announced.
Poor management of three government nuclear sites has led to cost increases of £1.35bn and delays of more than six years, the public spending watchdog has found.
NHS England has missed the government’s vaccination targets for a fifth consecutive year despite funding of £145m in 2018-19, the spending watchdog has found.
It is becoming increasingly important to account for assets and liabilities in the public sector because of the rise of commercialisation, the spending watchdog has said.
The government spent at least £97m on Brexit consultancy services in the last financial year - but has failed to be fully transparent with costs, the spending watchdog has found.
The government must improve its oversight of governance in local authorities as they struggle with increased financial and demand pressure, England’s spending watchdog has urged.
The number of public bodies in England failing to provide value for money is “unacceptably high” and increasing, the public spending watchdog has warned.
The prime minister and the chair of the Public Accounts Committee have selected Gareth Davies as their preferred candidate to become the next head of the National Audit Office.
The Treasury’s focus on controlling public spending in the short term risks value for money over the long term, according to the UK’s spending watchdog.
The government has spent at least £239m on 26 inquiries since 2005 but does not monitor their effectiveness, the official public spending watchdog has revealed today.
Local authorities in England are struggling to cope with higher demands and cost pressures, according to a report from the National Audit Office out today.
