THE Public Accounts Committee of Parliament has begun its examination of a set of proposals for the upgrading of the Department of the Auditor General.

Last December, Auditor General Pamela Monroe-Ellis appealed to the Government to implement proposals made by the Public Sector Transformation Unit (PSTU) over two years ago to strengthen her department. The entity, she told the PAC, was handicapped and at risk because of its present structure.

The auditor general, in presenting the PAC with the department’s 2012-2015 strategic business plan, said the department was prone to weaknesses which may threaten its independence and could contribute to disruption in its audits and processes.

Following that appeal, a sub-committee of the PAC was formed to peruse the business plan resulting in the interim report presented at Tuesday’s meeting.

Acting Auditor General Maxine Hutchinson, commenting on the issue Tuesday, said the capacity building initiative will improve the performance of the department.

The sub-committee, in its report, said the plea by the department for an independent body to audit its operations was supported but expressed uncertainty as to how this would operate.

The acting auditor general yesterday said what was “envisioned was that a private company will be engaged to conduct the audit”.

In the meantime, concerns were expressed about the recommendation of the Department for the establishment of an external advisory committee an issue on which there is still no final decision.

The Auditor General in explaining the rationale for the advisory body said a number of calls were received on a daily basis by persons requesting advice on how to proceed on a number of matters. She said the department had no person or body to look at her plan of action and give an independent opinion resulting in the issue being taken to the PAC for an external opinion.

Yesterday Committee Member Julian Robinson said he was concerned about the composition and function of the proposed external advisory committee.

Committee Chairman Audley Shaw said the PAC would be examining existing models of external advisory Committees in order for a decision to be made.

The Auditor General’s Department is mandated by the Constitution to audit the accounts of all government bodies.

Among the concerns raised in the business plan was that the department, like many other Government entities, is constrained by insufficient resources, inadequate staff complement and faces difficulty attracting qualified and competent persons.

According to Monroe Ellis, these factors increase the department’s risk that its audits will fail to identify fraudulent activities, non-compliance with government guidelines, inefficiency of government operations and misstatement of government accounts.