The information requested by my hon. Friend is not available. A number of Departments and other bodies spend government money in Africa. The National Audit Office record the cost of auditing the accounts of those bodies, and of the value for money studies they undertake, but no information is held on the cost of auditing the bodies’ activities in specific regions of the world. However, during the year to July 2006, as part of their audit of the main Departments involved in Africa, NAO staff visited Ghana, Malawi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Tunisia and Uganda to audit various UK government activities in those countries.
The Commission examines National Audit Office corporate plans, resource estimates and results on a regular basis. The Commission’s scrutiny programme includes examination of independent value for money reviews of the National Audit Office carried out by the office’s external auditors.
The external auditors have carried out some international comparisons as part of this work. The most recent comparisons were included in their report in 2004 on the effectiveness of the National Audit Office’s work in the context of achievements against the office’s target of securing for the taxpayer £8 savings for every £1 spent. The auditors concluded that the National Audit Office was more rigorous than any other similar organisation worldwide in the way in which it measured, recorded and reported the financial impact of its work.
The Commission continues to monitor the effectiveness of the office’s work on behalf of the House. Last week it carried out a further examination of the financial impacts achieved by the office and of its plans to increase the target to £9:1. I believe that the Comptroller and Auditor General and the National Audit Office provide an excellent service and excellent value for money for the House.