Chairmen's Committee - Approved Committee Minutes - 4 April 2008

Present

Deputy S C Ferguson, President Deputy R G Le Hérissier, Vice-President Deputy R C Duhamel

Deputy P J D Ryan

Deputy D.W. Mezbourian

Apologies

Deputy A. Breckon Deputy J G Reed

Absent

Deputy G P Southern

In attendance

Corporate Services Finance Sub-Panel Mrs K. Tremellen-Frost, Scrutiny Manager Mr. M. Haden, Scrutiny Officer

Ref Back

Agenda matter

Action

1.  Scrutiny of Annual Business Plan

The Committee welcomed the Corporate Services Finance Sub-Panel to the meeting to consider a scrutiny approach to the Annual Business Plan and to consider who would take responsibility in respect of the various areas.

The Committee agreed that it was essential that scrutiny provided a co- ordinated response to the Council of Ministers in a timely manner. However, concerns were expressed that it appeared as if the Council of Ministers  was  merely  either  seeking  an  endorsement  of  its prioritisations by scrutiny or asking scrutiny to deal with their spending pressures. This was not the rôle of the scrutiny function. It considered whether it should communicate this to the Council of Ministers.

Concerns were also expressed regarding the placing of some issues under the Chief Minister's Department within the Annual Business Plan when their rightful place was under a different Department. It was agreed that this should be questioned and consideration was given as to the practicalities of inviting the Chairman of another Panel onto the Corporate Services Panel when that Panel was interviewing the Chief Minister  and/or  the  Minister  of  Treasury  and  Resources  at  a forthcoming hearing. The Committee was advised that there was no power  of  co-option  onto  a  Panel  and  consequently  explored  the concept  of  inviting  a  Chairman  as  an  adviser  to  the  Panel.  The Committee was also advised that there was no provision to permit a States Member to act as an adviser to a Scrutiny Panel. The solution, therefore,  appeared  to  be  that  any  Panels  with  any  concerns  or questions which they would like asked of the Chief Minister or Minister of Treasury and Resources should put a summary of those matters in writing to the Chairman of the Corporate Services Panel.

The  Committee  noted  that  it  would  be  attending  a  briefing  by  the Comptroller and Auditor General on 7th April 2008 in respect of the

progress of his work on spending pressures and acknowledged that these reports should provide additional insight to assist with scrutiny of the Annual Business Plan.

The Committee noted that the Education and Home Affairs Panel had already identified a certain number of spending pressures and would be questioning the relevant Ministers on these, after which it would prepare its comments in accordance with its findings. Those comments would be forwarded to the Chairmen's Committee in accordance with a previous agreement of the Committee (meeting of 22nd February Item

8). It was agreed that Panel might not comment on the principle of States spending limits from the 2008 Business Plan being increased in light  of  new  pressures,  as  some  Panel  Chairmen  considered  this inappropriate for scrutiny.

The Committee agreed the following:-

1. Each Panel would follow the approach of the Education and Home  Affairs  Panel,  invite  in  the  respective  Ministers  and consider the identified spending pressures;

2. Each Panel  would prepare a comment on the above  which would be forwarded to the Chairmen's Committee by the week ending 25th April 2008;

3. Panel responses  would be co-ordinated and an overarching paper prepared at the start of the week commencing 28th April for circulation to the Chairmen's Committee and subsequently the Council of Ministers before the end of that week;

4. Consideration of the principle of a contingency provision would be undertaken by the Corporate Services Finance Sub-Panel in conjunction  with  the  Public  Accounts  Committee.  It would consider the abolition of the general reserve and changes which had centred on the Treasury and Resources Department and consider the background behind a contingency provision;

5. The Committee would meet the Council of Ministers on 15th May to discuss its responses.