Photo courtesy of The Anguillian newspaper.

From 16 – 17 November 2020, CPA UK facilitated a virtual Public Accounts Committee (PAC) Workshop, through the UK Overseas Territories Project (Phase Two). The workshop’s main objective was to equip the PAC in Anguilla with the knowledge and skills that will be necessary for its members to carry out their responsibilities effectively, when the new PAC sits for the first time in January 2021. 

This Workshop covered a wide range of themes, including how to manage an Inquiry and prepare for a Committee hearing, the role and responsibilities of witnesses, how to remain effective as a PAC in a virtual world, producing a fair and balanced report, and measuring success as a PAC. Parliamentarians were also given the opportunity to apply the skills and knowledge acquired to a PAC simulation exercise, based on a true case study. A full report reflecting the learning captured throughout the two days will soon be published here.

This Workshop brought together parliamentarians and parliamentary officials from Anguilla House of Assembly, the UK Parliament, the Parliament of Wales (Senedd Cymru) and the Isle of Man (Tynwald). Civil Servants from the Government of Anguilla and the Isle of Man also contributed to the workshop. The format of sessions included panel discussions, presentations, practical sessions involving simulations and peer to peer discussions.

The Chair of the Anguilla Public Accounts Committee, Honourable Cora Richardson-Hodge said: “…these series of workshops, and the post-election seminar, are necessary for us to be able to understand our role – and to engage with our public accounting offices to ensure that they understand their role so as to make our job more effective.”

For additional information, please contact Axell Kaubo on kauboa@parliament.uk

The Workshop was facilitated by the UK Overseas Territories Project, a programme of support for public financial management led by CPA UK, in partnership with the UK National Audit Office (NAO) and the UK Government Internal Audit Agency (GIAA). Click here for more information on the UK Overseas Territories Project.