On 13 October, the Auditor General for Scotland published the 2020/21 audit of the Crofting Commission.
The report says:
"Issues concerning the Commission’s governance were previously highlighted in 2016. At this time, the Scottish Government appointed consultants to carry out an external review of governance arrangements. The review found that strong personalities, differences of opinion and apparent incongruent individual objectives and priorities were having negative impacts on how the Commission’s Board carried out its functions. An almost entirely new Board took office over in the first three months of 2017, including six new elected commissioners following elections in March 2017. Membership of the Board stayed constant over the next four years. However, the auditors’ work this year identified that there has recently been a breakdown in trust between the Board and its senior management."
Read the report on Audit Scotland's website
Information about the Public Audit Committee's consideration of the report can be found below.
The Committee took evidence from:
Stephen Boyle, the Auditor General for Scotland; Graeme Greenhill, Senior Manager, Performance Audit and Best Value; and Pat Kenny, Director, Audit and Assurance, Deloitte LLP.
Read agenda and meeting papers 4 November 2021
Read the Official Report, 4 November 2021
Read the meeting minutes, 4 November 2021
Decision: The Committee agreed to invite the Crofting Commission and the Scottish Government to give oral evidence at a future meeting.
The Committee took evidence from:
Bill Barron, Chief Executive and Malcolm Mathieson, Convener, the Crofting Commission; followed by
Stephen Boyle, Auditor General for Scotland; Graeme Greenhill, Senior Manager, Performance Audit and Best Value, Audit Scotland; and Pat Kenny, Director, Audit and Assurance, Deloittee LLP.
Read the agenda and meeting papers 2 December 2021
Read the Official Report of 2 December 2021
Read the meeting minutes, 2 December 2021
Decision: The Committee will take further evidence on the report from the Scottish Government on the 16 December 2021.
The Committee took evidence from:
Roy Brannen, Director-General Net Zero; Andrew Scott, Director of Agriculture and Rural Economy; and John Kerr, Head of Agricultural Policy Division, Scottish Government.
Followed by:
Stephen Boyle, The Auditor General for Scotland; Graeme Greenhill, Senior Manager, Performance Audit and Best Value, Audit Scotland; and Pat Kenny, Director Audit and Assurance, Deloitte LLP
Read the agenda and meeting papers 16 December 2021
Read the Official Report 16 December 2021
Read the meeting minutes 16 December 2021
Decision: The Committee agreed to consider a draft report on the issues arising from the Committee's scrutiny at a future meeting.
The Committee also considered a submission from the former Convener and agreed to respond in writing.
Decision: At its meeting on 8 December 2022, the Committee agreed to close its scrutiny of the report.