Earlier this year Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board received a report from an external accountancy firm recording that firm’s findings on issues relating to the misallocation of spending in the Health Board’s accounts.
The third party report has been taken extremely seriously and further investigations are taking place. This will enable the Health Board to reach its own conclusions, in light of all the evidence, as to how the misallocation came about and who should be treated as being responsible for the misallocation.
We have taken the view that the report should be disclosed to the Public Accounts and Public Administration Committee (PAPAC) in confidence (with the names of junior officials redacted) so that the Committee can conduct its important statutory oversight and scrutiny work unimpeded. The Health Board’s Interim Chair Dyfed Edwards and Interim Chief Executive Carol Shillabeer will attend a private evidence session of the Committee on 5th July 2023.
In fairness to affected individuals and taking into account the need to ensure that the principles of natural justice are being respected and that individuals are not unduly and unfairly being tried in the court of public opinion, we will not comment further in a public forum on the subject matter of the report pending the conclusions of ongoing investigations.