To ask the Chairman of the Public Accounts Commission what discussions he has held with the Comptroller and Auditor General on the cost of inspecting the accounts of NHS trusts. [11846]

The Commission regularly discusses the costs of the National Audit Office's activities, most recently on 23 July 1997 when it considered the NAO's corporate plan for 1998–99 to 2002–03. The costs of inspecting the accounts of NHS trusts are included in the plan, but were not separately identified or discussed.