Scottish Parliament Public Audit Committee
Scope
This section explains what the Public Audit Committee is and provides guidance on written and oral evidence to the Public Audit Committee of the Scottish Parliament (the Committee) and responding formally to any subsequent reports.
Applicability
The guidance is applicable to the constituent parts of the Scottish Administration (i.e. the core Scottish Government (SG), the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, SG Executive Agencies, and non-ministerial departments) and bodies sponsored by the SG. The guidance is relevant to other entities to which the Scottish Public Finance Manual (SPFM) is directly applicable and procedures consistent with the guidance should be followed as appropriate.
Definitions:
Shall/must: denotes a requirement; a mandatory element
Should: denotes a recommendation; an advisory element
May: denotes approval
Might: denotes a possibility
Can: denotes both capability and possibility
Is/are: denotes a description
Links to relevant guidance:
Principles:
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defined in the Public Finance and Accountability Act (PFA Act) under sections 1-20
SG guidance:
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specific guidance on SG evidence and responses to committees of the Scottish Parliament is available from the governance and accountability team
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further guidance is available on the below public sector guidance links
Public sector bodies guidance:
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On Board - A guide for Board Members of Public Bodies in Scotland
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Protocol on the handling of committee business | Scottish Parliament Website
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Chapter 14 Laying and Publication of Documents | Scottish Parliament Website
Review/update
Lead area: Scottish Government Finance Directorate; Risk Control and Assurance Division – Governance and Accountability Branch.
For update/review of this principle please refer to the Guidance and Procedure available on the SG intranet or from the Governance and Accountability team, this includes information on ministerial approval.
Accessibility guidance is available on the SG intranet.
Background
The Public Audit Committee of the Scottish Parliament is one of the committees established under chapter 6 of the Standing Orders of the Parliament. The Public Audit Committee uses the reports of the Auditor General for Scotland, which are laid before the Parliament, as the basis for conducting enquiries. It is chaired by a senior member of the Opposition and conducts its business on non-party political lines.
To inform its deliberations the Committee may require relevant Accountable Officers and others (e.g. Ministers and Chairs of NDPB Boards) to provide written and/or oral evidence. The Committee may ask the relevant Accountable Officers for written responses to Auditor General for Scotland conclusions and recommendations and to any questions arising out of discussion by the Committee following briefings from the Auditor General for Scotland. The Committee may then request additional written evidence and/or invite the relevant Accountable Officers to an oral evidence session. Occasionally the Committee may decide to go straight to oral evidence without asking for written evidence first. Unresolved issues arising out of oral evidence sessions will be followed up in writing by the Committee. In cases where the Committee considers it appropriate to do so it will then publish its own report.
The Committee must be informed of all Accountable Officer designations and Written Authorities, as detailed in the Accountability section of the SPFM. The Committee must also be informed of any instances where a ministerial decision in the capacity of sole shareholder of a commercial public body overrides the board, as detailed in Annex B: Investment in business by Scottish Ministers: Disclosure of information. Accountable Officer’s may be called on by the Committee to discuss any written authorities. Relevant Accountable Officers and others (e.g. Ministers and Chairs of NDPB Boards) may also be called on by the Committee to provide written and/or oral evidence in respect of their Accountable Officer responsibilities, detailed in the Accountability section of the SPFM, in response to Auditor General for Scotland reports, conclusions and recommendations.
The aims and objectives of the Committee may be subject to change at each session. Aims and objectives for session 6 are that through its scrutiny of reports from the Auditor General for Scotland, including engaging with public and stakeholders, the Committee will make a difference to the quality of public services in Scotland by:
- maintaining an overview of how public money is being spent by the Scottish Government, and other public bodies (including colleges, police and fire services, and the NHS)
- holding public-sector leaders to account on how public funds have been spent by:
- influencing public bodies to take appropriate action to implement the recommendations made by the Public Audit Committee and the Auditor General for Scotland
- encouraging public bodies to publicly evidence how they will respond to recommendations, and the progress they have subsequently made
- driving continuous improvement across the public sector by:
- taking a whole-systems approach to our scrutiny of audit reports, as well as scrutinising organisation-by-organisation issues reported to us
- promoting good practice which is drawn to our attention
- co-ordinating scrutiny with other committees so it adds value.
The remit of the Committee is to consider and report on the following:
- any accounts laid before the Parliament
- any report laid before or made to the Parliament by the Auditor General for Scotland
- any other document laid before the Parliament or referred to by the Parliamentary Bureau or by the Auditor General for Scotland, concerning financial control, accounting, and auditing in relation to public expenditure
- matters relating to the performance of officeholders established by the Parliament.
These aims and objectives are set each parliament and may be amended as appropriate each term.
The Key Stages:
- The Auditor General for Scotland's report is discussed with the body concerned and the facts are agreed
- the report is laid before Parliament and published together with a Press Release
- If an enquiry is to be conducted by the Committee, an initial evidence session will be held with the Auditor General for Scotland, following that witnesses are called to give evidence - usually the Accountable Officer of the public body and the Accountable Officer of the sponsor Directorate. It is possible that the Chair or a Board member of a public body will be required to appear as a witness, where appropriate
- After the evidence session, the Committee will:
- write to the relevant subject Committee to draw its attention to issues raised in the report and during the evidence sessions; or
- write to the Scottish Government/audited body to express its views; or
- the Committee drafts and approves a report which is published
- A formal response to the Committee's report is provided by the Scottish Government (or by the body in consultation with the Scottish Government) within two months of the Committee's report being published
Written Evidence
If a written response is being provided in advance of an oral evidence session, the Committee Clerks should be contacted regarding timescales for submission. The written response will then be included in the public papers for the evidence session.
Written evidence should specifically address each separately identifiable question/issue in turn in the same order as the written request from the Committee, with the questions/issues being reproduced in bold in the response for ease of reference. Responses should be as focused and direct as possible but must also take into account the responsibility that Accountable Officers have towards the Parliament (and Ministers) to put relevant matters into their proper context. Written responses to the conclusions and recommendations in Auditor General for Scotland reports should follow the guidance on formal responses to Committee reports below.
All written evidence provided by Portfolio Accountable Officers to the Committee should, where appropriate, be cleared with the relevant Scottish Government Finance Business Partner (or equivalent) and the responsible Cabinet Secretary or Minister. Portfolio Accountable Officers and Scottish Government Finance Business Partners and, where appropriate, the responsible Cabinet Secretary or Minister, should be given the opportunity to comment in advance on written evidence being provided direct to the Committee by the Accountable Officers of Scottish Government Executive Agencies, non-ministerial departments and bodies sponsored by the Scottish Government.
Appearance before the Committee to provide Oral Evidence
Under section 23 of the Scotland Act 1998 the Parliament may require persons to attend its proceedings for the purpose of giving evidence. Organisations may suggest which of their officials would be best placed to give evidence but the decision rests with the Parliament. The Committee would normally require relevant Accountable Officers to appear as witnesses at any oral evidence sessions in connection with reports initiated by the Auditor General for Scotland. (In certain cases, Portfolio Accountable Officers may be required to appear together with Accountable Officers for relevant Scottish Government Executive Agencies, non-ministerial departments or bodies sponsored by the Scottish Government.)
Witnesses at oral evidence sessions may be supported by other officials but their numbers should be kept to a minimum, you should engage with the Committee clerks to agree the number of attendees to support, the Committee clerks will then inform the Convener/Committee of any additional witnesses to attend. Accountable Officers should not attempt to justify policy objectives or ministerial decisions. This reflects the principle that the merits of government programmes and projects are primarily a matter for political debate and ultimately for Ministers to explain. The Committee should address any such questions directly to the responsible Cabinet Secretary or Minister. If an official is unable to respond to a question during the oral evidence session, for example, they need to check figures/facts to provide an accurate answer, they can offer to provide the information in writing after the evidence session.
The Committee will always ask if the Accountable Officer would like to make an opening statement, this is optional and it should be kept brief and concise.
Preparation for a Committee appearance to provide Oral Evidence
Given the wide breadth of coverage of Auditor General for Scotland reports no rigid structure for the form of the brief can be set. Individual Accountable Officers will have their own preferences on the form. The brief will have to contain adequate background and supplementary material for the Accountable Officer to familiarise themselves with the subject. It should contain specific suggested lines to take in response to any likely criticisms, and the specific conclusions or recommendations in the report. Committee members may ask questions on other aspects of the report, on points raised during the session with the Auditor General for Scotland, or any points contained in any written submissions the Committee may have received, and the brief should attempt, as far as possible, to anticipate such questions and provide suggested answers. Officials preparing briefings may find it helpful to seek an early meeting with the Accountable Officer to discuss the Auditor General for Scotland report and the form and scope of the briefing. Relevant finance officials should be invited to any such meeting.
The Committee may question Accountable Officers on issues which have not been covered in the Auditor General for Scotland report. A report's silence on issues or accusations in the public domain will be no guarantee against their being raised. Officials preparing briefings should, depending on the circumstances of the case, alert Accountable Officers to the possibility and offer appropriate briefing.
The timetable for preparation of briefing should allow for comments by the relevant finance officials and reasonably early clearance by the Accountable Officer of the general form of the briefing and the line to be taken. The final brief should be submitted to the Accountable Officer in good time before the hearing and in accordance with their wishes. Following on from that, the Accountable Officer may wish to meet officials to discuss aspects of the brief. A final briefing meeting with officials should normally be held either on the morning of the hearing or a day or so before.
Areas of disagreement with Auditor General for Scotland reports
Any significant concerns over presentation, opinions, and conclusions in Auditor General for Scotland reports should be brought to the attention of the Committee in writing prior to any oral evidence session taking place. Any such concerns should also be addressed in the Accountable Officer's opening statement at the evidence session.
Security considerations
The Committee's policy is to conduct evidence sessions, as far as possible, in public and to publish as much evidence as possible. However, the Committee may consider requests by the Accountable Officer to take evidence in private sessions and that confidential evidence given in such sessions or in writing should not be published. Security or other classifications intended to restrict publication must be used only when absolutely necessary and then only on a selective basis, the Committee will not agree to withhold publication simply because it may be inconvenient for the organisation in question. Any requests for the Committee to hear oral evidence in private session or consider written evidence on a confidential basis should be addressed to the committee clerk in the first instance. The Committee is required to formally agree to consider issues in private or on a confidential basis in advance of the evidence being submitted and this should be raised with the Committee clerks as early as possible.
Checking evidence in advance of publication
Committee proceedings are recorded verbatim and, except where there are security considerations, published in the Official Report. Witnesses are not sent a draft transcript to check. Anyone who has given evidence will, on request to the Editor of the Official Report, be given access to a draft of their own evidence - it is not possible to see anyone else's evidence - in advance of publication and corrections can be made subject to the approval of the sub-editors. Witnesses should ensure that they take the opportunity to check their evidence and submit corrections.
Publication of committee reports
Committee reports are drafted by the Committee Clerks before being considered, agreed, and signed off by the Committee. Accountable Officers will be given sight of strictly embargoed copies of reports 24 hours in advance of publication.
Prior to publication the lead business area should, in consultation with the relevant Scottish Government Finance Business Partner, do the following:
- write to Ministers, including the First Minister, Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Finance, informing them of the impending publication, summarising the findings, and highlighting any issues that are likely to attract public interest, and
- prepare a "line to take" (see below) for use in response to media inquiries.
Publicity
Responses to the publication of Committee reports should where possible avoid comment that could pre-empt formal responses to the reports. Media briefing may respond to criticisms contained in or engendered by a report but should make it clear that careful consideration would be given to the recommendations and that a formal response would be provided to the Committee in due course. Officials may also provide relevant factual information and correct any misstatements of fact or interpretation in media coverage.
Progress reports
Progress reports to the Committee on specific issues may be included in the formal responses to specific reports. The Committee may seek progress reports on the implementation of specific recommendations included in one or more of its reports. The Committee may seek information on progress across a range of reports during each session of the Parliament. Current practice is for the Committee to agree which of its recommendations it wishes to see included in a progress report at the time it considers the formal Scottish Government response to a report. Accountable Officers will be notified of these issues in writing by the Committee clerks. Any progress reports should be cleared by the relevant Scottish Government Finance Business Partners, Accountable Officers and Ministers.
Laying of responses and progress reports
Responses, including follow-up responses, to Committee reports and progress reports should be laid before the Parliament. Guidance on Laying Reports before the Scottish and UK Parliaments is available on the Scottish Government Intranet and the Scottish Parliament website. The full formal responses should be laid within the 2 month period whether or not the Parliament is in recess and consideration should be given to whether any other written evidence would benefit from being laid.
The placing of copies in SPICe's Document Supply Centre and notification in the Parliament's Business Bulletin is all that is done as standard in order to bring laid documents to the attention of MSPs and the wider public. Consideration should be given on a case by case basis to whether additional publicity for responses and progress reports is desirable and arrangements made, as necessary.
Parliamentary debates
Parliamentary debates may be held on issues arising from Committee reports. Any associated briefing for Ministers should be cleared by the relevant Scottish Government Finance Business Partners and Portfolio Accountable Officers and copied to the Cabinet Secretary for Finance.
Updated: August 2026