SHORTCOMINGS that led to Fallagate have not been rectified. The Wales Audit Office review into why the cheapest tender to build the hospital clinical block was pulled made a series of recommendations.
These included keeping minutes of important meetings and addressing the issue of members’ interests.
Public Accounts Committee chairman Leon Gallienne updated the House yesterday on what had happened since February.
‘Although some progress has been made in carrying the 14 recommendations forward, there is still some way to go before processes, procedures, rules and guidance notes will have been changed to rectify the shortcomings identified by the Wales Audit Office,’ he said.
Some of these changes were major and could take a considerable time to implement, he said.
‘In view of the fact that none of the recommendations has been fully implemented in the last nine months, Public Accounts will continue to monitor progress and report back when appropriate.’
One of the main critics at the time, Deputy Barry Brehaut, was disappointed with the progress.
‘From the date of the report we should have spent considerably more time on it, but because of the volume of States work, particularly zero-10, we have taken the eye off the ball,’ said Deputy Brehaut.
Chief Minister Mike Torode said various departments had experienced resource problems.
‘Things have moved, but I’m the first to admit they are not galloping - but they have not been pushed to one side and forgotten,’ said Deputy Torode. ‘When this present excessive workload is out of the way, then I suspect people will have more time.’
The WAO report into why a tender that was £2.4m. cheaper was withdrawn was debated in heated circumstances in February, with the Policy Council later resigning en masse.
In April, the newly-elected council decided who would take responsibility for each recommendation and told each to report back by the end of July. Treasury and Resources and Commerce and Employment did.
The House Committee, because of staffing issues, got back in October.
The Policy Council considered the responses on 26 November.
After yesterday’s debate, Deputy Gallienne said it was not for the committee to comment on whether it was disappointed or not.
Article posted on 13th December, 2007 - 12.00am
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