Auditor General seeks views on performance audits programme

The Auditor General, Sue Winspear, requests the public to provide input to her Office’s (OAG) new performance audits programme. The programme will give the public, Members of Parliament, the Government and the wider public sector clarity about the:

• performance audits that the OAG started in 2022;
• performance audits that the OAG plans to carry out in 2023; and
• potential performance audits to be carried out in the three years from 2024 to 2026.

Ms. Winspear said, “I believe that members of the public are in an excellent position to provide input to our work programme. We are very interested in users’ views about the public services provided and what areas could do with an audit review to try to drive service improvement. I welcome the public’s comments on areas of core government, statutory authority and government companies’ operations where they think my Office could add value by looking at how economically, efficiently and effectively services are delivered.”

The OAG currently has underway five performance audits and one public interest report that will be published between now and the summer of 2023. The PA programme includes proposals for another six potential audits in 2023 – four performance audits and two public interest reports. The programme also contains proposals for performance audits that could be done over the three years 2024 to 2026. None of the proposed pieces of work from 2023 onwards are fixed and these may be changed as a result of feedback received.

The current OAG proposals include the following four performance audits in 2023: 

• Access to health insurance or Review of the Standard Health Insurance Contract (SHIC).
• Affordable housing.
• Governance in Statutory Authorities and Government Companies (SAGCs).
• The Government’s progress with its 5-Year Strategic Plan for a World-Class Civil Service 2018-2022.

In addition, the OAG is currently proposing to work on, and release the following Public Interest Reports in 2023:

• Remuneration of key management personnel, that is senior civil servants and MPs.
• Impact of the post-election Government reorganization in 2021.

The Auditor General continues, “I want to ensure that my office provides the best value for money to the people of the Cayman Islands. My office will achieve this by using the resources we have available for performance audits to focus on the issues that matter most and where we can add the most value. Your views on what matters and when we should audit issues will be important factors in helping us decide on the final programme of work.”

The OAG’s five-year performance audits programme for the period 2022 to 2026 can be found on the OAG website www.auditorgeneral.gov.ky. The consultation will run until 2 December 2022, after which the Auditor General will consider all comments received and finalise a programme by 9 December 2022. 

Feedback on the proposed programme of performance audits can be provided to the Auditor General by email at auditorgeneral@oag.gov.ky or in writing at PO Box 2583, Grand Cayman, KY1-1103, Cayman Islands. More information about the performance audits programme can be obtained by contacting Sue Winspear at (345) 244-3201 or Angela Cullen, Deputy Auditor General (Performance Audit), at (345) 244-3220. 

1. The OAG currently has the following performance audits underway:
   1. The integrated Solid Waste Management System for the Cayman Islands (Regen).
   2. Improving financial accountability and transparency: Long-term financial sustainability.
   3. Cayman Airways Limited.
   4. Improving employment prospects for Caymanians.
   5. Rebuilding and diversifying the economy.
2. The OAG currently has the following public interest report underway:
   1. Overview of the environment: Cayman Islands’ progress against the Sustainable Development Goals.
3. The OAG will aim to publish at least one report each year following up on the Government’s progress with PAC recommendations. The timing of these reports depends upon the Government formally responding to PAC reports.
4. The OAG publishes a programme of potential performance audits for five years and updates it annually.
5. The Auditor General has already consulted with the members of the Public Accounts Committee.
6. In finalising the proposed programme, the Auditor General will also consult senior officials in the Government.
7. A Public Interest Report, unlike a performance audit, does not make recommendations but instead assists transparency and public accountability by putting digestible information into the public domain.