What we do
Download the Commission's role, duties and powers (PDF | 47KB)
Find out more about each of the areas below:
An Audit Scotland report published today says that, whilst progress has been made since 2001, NHS boards and hospitals are still not managing hospital waste as well as they could. In particular they need to increase their recycling and ensure they sort and store all waste properly. These measures would contribute to a better environment, improve safety and reduce rising costs.
Deputy Auditor General, Caroline Gardner, says:
An Accounts Commission report published today looks at how councils deal with requests for services and information from their customers, including taxpayers and business contacts.
Good customer service is an integral part of councils’ duty of Best Value. The report says that councils have made improvements, but need to review organisation and leadership to ensure their customer service is as efficient and effective as possible.
An Audit Scotland report published today highlights that solving the problem of delayed discharges needs action across all parts of the health and community care system. Although the number of patients delayed in hospital is steadily falling, a growing older population means that further action is needed to sustain this progress. This includes:
West Lothian Council has been praised for its ability to transform its ambitious vision for the local area into improving services for the people who live there, according to a report published by the Accounts Commission today (Thursday 30 June 2005).
The Best Value Audit report says that West Lothian Council performs well, is fully committed to continuous improvement, and has responded effectively when faced with adverse demographic and economic factors.
The NHS in Scotland could improve the management of medicines in hospitals to make sure patients are getting the most benefit from the money spent in this area. These are the conclusions of a new study, A Scottish prescription: managing the use of medicines in hospitals, published today by the Auditor General.
A report published by Audit Scotland for the Accounts Commission today (Wednesday 5 October 2005) says that Dundee City council’s services generally perform well for its community, but that more modernisation and better scrutiny by councillors will be required for the future.
Today’s Best Value audit report is the seventh in a rolling programme affecting all 32 local authorities in Scotland and provides information to local people about how well the council is organised to deliver improvement.
Scottish Water has made a good start in raising the water industry’s performance but can make further improvements, says the Auditor General.
In a report published today, Overview of the water industry in Scotland, the Auditor General for Scotland Robert Black says that since Scottish Water’s creation in 2002:
Last year the Scottish Executive launched new initiatives amounting to £1.4 billion. The management of these projects is generally sound, but making changes could help to improve control of the funding and allow better assessment of whether the money is helping to achieve policy aims.
This is the conclusion of a report published today by Scotland’s Auditor General, entitled How Government Works: The Scottish Executive - Supporting New Initiatives.
