Author: Northern Ireland
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780102939705
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 48
Get Book
Book Description
The company Into the West (ITW) was established in 1997 as a partnership between the former Local Enterprise Development Unit and five district councils in Northern Ireland to promote local economic development in the Tyrone and Fermanagh area. Following a joint investigation by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment and the Local Government Auditor into allegations of financial impropriety and poor management controls involving considerable sums of public money, ITW's activities were suspended from March 2002, and the company entered voluntary liquidation in June 2004. This report by the Northern Ireland Audit Office focuses on ITW's use of overseas agents (based in Australia, New Zealand and North America) to help promote joint business ventures between local firms and overseas companies. It draws a number of conclusions in relation to: the standard of documentation, the appointment of agents and the contractual arrangements involved, management and control procedures, payments to agents and performance, and the poor planning of a proposed visit to Australia; and based on these findings sets out a number of good practice recommendations for the use of agents by government departments and other public bodies in the future.
Author: Northern Ireland. Audit Office
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780102948035
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 50
Get Book
Book Description
Since 2000-01, the Department for Regional Development has provided £155 million for capital investment in the rail network in Northern Ireland. In January 2001, the Department approved a project costing £14.7 million to upgrade the Belfast to Bangor railway line, one of the busiest railway lines in Northern Ireland carrying nearly 2 million passengers a year. However, this NIAO report finds that the project experienced a number of difficulties, resulting in a very significant overspend and late delivery, with a final cost of almost £34 million, and completion in September 2002 delayed by nine months later than planned. The problems were the result of failures in several key areas, and in addition to the increased cost of the project, there is uncertainty as to whether it has delivered all of its intended benefits. The original specification of a 90 mph speed limit was reduced to 70 mph and other works on bridges and sea defences were removed from the contract to reduce costs. The report makes a number of recommendations to improve performance in relation to: economic appraisal; construction procurement and project management; records management; ex-gratia payments to staff; corporate governance; and departmental control of capital projects.
Author: Northern Ireland: Northern Ireland Audit Office
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 0102941157
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 84
Get Book
Book Description
The project to build a higher education campus at Springvale in Belfast was first proposed in 1993, and in 1997 the University of Ulster and the Belfast Institute for Further and Higher Education submitted a joint proposal to the Department of Education in Northern Ireland to build three educational facilities on the site, including a campus for 3,000 students covering higher and future education courses. This project was designed to develop partnerships between educational providers and local communities to address the particular educational, cultural and social needs of West and North Belfast, as well as benefiting Northern Ireland in general. It was also intended to promote regeneration in an area marked by significant economic and social deprivation and educational underachievement. However, in October 2002, the University announced its withdrawal from the project due to financial concerns over its affordability. At this point, over nine million pounds had been spent on the project, with one of the three planned facilities (a community outreach centre) built and functional. This NIAO report examines the development and management of the project to identify lessons to be drawn for the future, and overall it concludes that, given the length of time spent developing this project and the major public and private funding commitments involved, it should have been handled much better, particularly in terms of risk management. Key lessons highlighted include the need for: an agreed and clear strategic vision from the outset; a single independent body established to oversee project management where two or more institutions are involved; and better communication with local communities on the risks involved to promote realistic community expectations.
Author: Northern Ireland: Northern Ireland Audit Office
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780102948165
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 44
Get Book
Book Description
Strengthening governance in the public sector is seen as a means of improving the capability of public bodies to deliver high quality services. The need to promote and encourage good corporate governance within departments and arms length bodies (ALBs) in Northern Ireland has been underscored by several high profile cases of weaknesses which became the subject of recent NIAO/Public Accounts Committee reports: the Northern Ireland Tourist Board, education and library boards, and LEDU. This report, based on a review of six departments and ten of their ALBs, examines three main areas: (1) structural relationships; (2) management of sponsorship risks; (3) accountability. Structures within departments for dealing with sponsored bodies should be clearly defined with clear channels of management, accountability and communication. A coherent strategic management approach should promote consistency of business objectives. Departments and ALBs should co-operate in setting objectives, agreeing targets. Departments should ensure that ALBs have in place necessary financial and management controls and procedures. On risk, departments should have processes in place for the identification and management of risks associated with sponsorship, and these should be regularly reviewed. Internal audit can provide assurance on risk management. To safeguard accountability, effective liaison, reporting and monitoring arrangements are required. ALB boards, and departmental and ALB audit committees have crucial roles in accountability.
Author: Northern Ireland Audit Office
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780102948134
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 40
Get Book
Book Description
In 2005-06 some £259 million was spent on outpatient services in Northern Ireland. A perennial cause of inefficiency in the provision of these services has been patients' failure to attend appointments and the cancellation of clinics by Trusts. In September 2006 almost 15,000 consultant-led clinic sessions were cancelled and there were 200,000 cases of patients not attending. A survey found that some 10 per cent of outpatients are "not seen" through cancellation or non-attendance, an opportunity cost of £11.6 million. Health service managers and clinicians need to monitor non-attendance/cancellation rates closely, in order to clarify the factors influencing them, and to allow planning of effective strategies aimed at minimising any loss of time and resources. The report also notes that outpatient services run by healthcare professionals other than consultants are not covered in the weekly statistical management information currently collected: if these are included outpatient activity levels are twice that officially reported. Changes to the way in which patients and general practitioners access outpatient services are being implemented and they should reduce waiting times and have an impact on cancelled clinics and missed appointments.
Author: Great Britain: National Audit Office
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780102944686
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 52
Get Book
Book Description
This report by the National Audit Office, made under sections 156 and 157 of the Finance Act 1998, examines the conventions and assumptions underlying the Treasury's fiscal projections within the 2007 Budget (HCP 342, session 2006-07; ISBN 9780102944556).
Author: Northern Ireland
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 0102939756
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 56
Get Book
Book Description
Author: Northern Ireland: Northern Ireland Audit Office
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 0102939659
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 64
Get Book
Book Description
This report examines major weaknesses in the part played by the former Local Enterprise Development Unit (LEDU) in the establishment and oversight of the Emerging Business Trust (EBT). The ETB was created in 1996 with funds of £3 million provided by the International Fund for Ireland and £0.75 million by LEDU, mainly administering a loan fund. In 2000 EBT also established a venture fund, with a total funding of £0.6 million. EBT voluntarily ceased to carry on business in April 2005, and a liquidator was appointed to wind up the affairs of both the loan and venture funds. Invest Northern Ireland (a development agency which assumed the responsibilities of LEDU in 2002) carried out an investigation, which identified a long list of failings: conflicts of interest, especially involving a LEDU board member who was also a partner in MTF Chartered Accountants who were the managing agents of both funds; LEDU's failure to follow its own procedures; normal public sector rules on competitive tendering were not followed; a high level of bad debt (£1.1 million was written off); insufficient monitoring by LEDU. NIAO finds that many of these failings show non-observance of the Public Accounts Committee's recommendations in its report "The proper conduct of public business" (HC 154, 8th report session 1993-94). The poor standards of administration fell far below the normal standards operating elsewhere in the Northern Ireland public sector. Invest Northern Ireland and the Department have undertaken a number of actions and current corporate governance arrangements are very different. NIAO believes there are lessons of relevance here to the wider public sector.
Author: Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Dairying
Languages : en
Pages : 774
Get Book
Book Description
Author: Isaac Slater
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Great Britain
Languages : en
Pages : 1420
Get Book
Book Description
