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management and existing conditions and he reports independently to the Deputy Commissioner on his findings, including recommendations as appropriate.
3.21 Some of the possible ways and means of improving control within departments have been examined above. In discussions concerning wider implications of control, however, it was also recognised that central government itself needs to have means available by which departmental performance can be monitored and managerial effectiveness reviewed; means by which knowledge and information relating to past and current performance in specific areas can be obtained and evaluated, to enable more effective formulation of policy, more effective utilisation of resources, and better means of operational implementation for the future.
3.22 Service-Wide Control
Part of this need is met by the resource branches of the Government Secretariet which exercise a form of service-wide control of specific managerial or technical functions; e.g. Finance Branch, exercises control of the utilisation of financial resources through the annual estimates system and controls the complementing of Government departments; Civil Service Branch controls the application of service-wide and largely standardised conditions of service and discipline, recruitment, grading of posts, termination, etc. in the personnel management function, in consultation with the Chairman, Public Services Commission where appropriate.
3.23 The Director of Audit exercises another significant form of service-wide
control in terms of his examination of financial regularity. The present position is that the department undertakes independent audit at three different levels :-.
,1
.2
.3
The "Accuracy audit", or "tick and turn" as it is known within the department, which is basically investigation of the accuracy of financial transactions.
The "regularity audit", which is an examination to establish that money has been spent for the purpose for which it was voted within the ambit of the vote, as described in financial estimates.
The "value for money" audit which is a much wider, more searching and questioning approach to the service a particular arm of Government is providing. At this level the Director of Audit's role complements the systems of internal audit being practised in some Government departments although it is not suggested that, at this time, they should be other than complementary.
3.24 The Director of Audit emphasised that he is in an independent position to
investigate any matter which he may think fit and in practice, the investigations are wide ranging and, inter alia, necessarily involve consideration of the performance of officers in the exercise of their financial responsibilities. With regard to examination of Government policy, the duties and powers of the Director of Audit determine that his main concern is the effect of policy, but naturally such examination, in many instances, leads back to an examination of the policy itself. The Director of Audit is not empowered to require anyone to change policy; he can only point to the effects of the policy, He accepts that in some instances Government may nonetheless decide to continue with a particular policy in the light of a combination of factors which require "political" judgement.
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