The Treasury has released guidance on the government’s commitment to publish a summary of the key points from an accounting officer assessment from April 2017, while providing advice on how accounting officers should assess a policy/project against four standards, including details on when to publish a summary
Accounting officers must ensure that the actions of the public organisation they lead meet the four accounting officer standards of regularity, propriety, value for money and feasibility. They have to approve all significant initiatives, policies, programmes and projects to provide assurance to parliament that these are meeting the standards.
From April 2017, an accounting officer assessment should always be produced for projects or programmes which form part of the government’s Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP). When approved the accounting officer should provide Parliament with a summary of the key points from the assessment which informed their judgment.
An accounting officer assessment:
- helps to ensure good decision making, and provide positive assurance that the four accounting officer standards are being met;
- informs design or redesign of a policy or proposal so that the four accounting officer standards are met;
- helps decide whether to seek a ministerial direction, and if so on what grounds;
- ensures good record keeping on the policy or proposed action; and
- helps deal with challenges to the decision, for example, from the Public Accounts Committee.
Guidance on accounting officer assessments is available here.
