Antony Clark and John Cornett have been appointed Executive Directors at Audit Scotland, leading our audit teams.

Antony has been appointed Executive Director of Performance Audit and Best Value, making permanent a role he has performed in an interim basis since March 2022. John is the new Executive Director of Audit Services, having joined Audit Scotland almost three and a half years ago as an Audit Director overseeing financial audit work.  

Antony said: 

The roll out of new devolved social security benefits is going well but there is still a lot to be delivered.

New and complex social security benefits such as the Scottish Child Payment have been launched despite the challenges of the pandemic. People are also positive about their experience of Social Security Scotland.

But substantial risks remain, including:

Vicki Bibby has been appointed the new Chief Operating Officer of Audit Scotland.

Vicki is an experienced leader in Scotland’s public sector and joins Audit Scotland from her current role as Director of Strategic Planning and Performance at Public Health Scotland, a post she has held through the Covid-19 pandemic. She has also previously worked at the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) as Head of Resources and Chief Finance Officer.

Vicki said:

Educating people and equipping them with relevant skills is essential in improving their life experiences and helping them to fulfil their potential and gain employment, in turn supporting Scotland’s economic growth.

Independent audit was unable to conclude that governance at South Lanarkshire College was satisfactory over the last year.

Auditors found a number of areas where the college did not fully comply with the Code of Good Governance for Scotland's Colleges at the start of the academic year 2021/22. This included the board not meeting for five months from June 2021, and the audit and risk committee not meeting for six months from May 2021.

The private firms that will help deliver the audit of Scotland's public bodies over the next five years have been confirmed.

 

From October 2022, the following companies will deliver a selection of audits on behalf of the Auditor General for Scotland, for health, central government and further education bodies, and the Accounts Commission for Scotland, for local government bodies:

Major problems remain unresolved at the shipyard constructing two lifeline ferries for Scottish islands. More than two years after the Scottish Government took over control of the shipyard, significant operational failures still need to be fully resolved and further remedial work on the vessels continues to be uncovered.

A report into Orkney and Shetland Valuation Joint Board (VJB) highlights significant concerns in relation to governance and transparency. The Board accepts and is committed to addressing these urgent issues, with some improvement action having already been taken. There is, however, a clear need for improvements in governance and decision making.

The Accounts Commission found the processes used to manage the contracts and pay awards for the Assessor and Depute Assessor to be seriously flawed. Decisions taken were unlawful or not supported by the appropriate procedures.

A detailed analysis of how Covid-19 business support funding was distributed during the pandemic is not possible due to gaps in data.

The Scottish Government provided about £4.4 billion of grants and non-domestic rate reliefs   between March 2020 and October 2021, mostly paid out to businesses by councils. The government announced a further £375 million of support in December 2021 following the emergence of the Omicron variant.

Scotland’s councils have increased reserves over the last year but must address the impacts of an overall reduction in funding and ongoing challenges caused by Covid-19.

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