Listen
Accounts Commission
27/11/2007
First Minister Alex Salmond and Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth John Swinney today announced the appointment of a new Chair and two new members to the Accounts Commission for Scotland.
The new Chair is Professor John Baillie who has extensive financial experience and has been a member of the Accounts Commission since September 2003.
He is the current Chair of the Commission's Financial Audit and Assurance Committee, as well as a former partner of a Big Four firm and a visiting Professor of Accountancy at Glasgow University. He is a member of the Reporting Panel of the Competition Commission and was a member of the Local Government Finance Review Committee for which he received a remuneration of approximately £25,000 and £4,000 per annum respectively. He is also a member of the Audit Scotland Board for which he receives no remuneration. Mr Baillie holds no other Ministerial appointments.
The new members are:
Adrienne Kelbie - a Chartered Fellow of the Institute of Personnel and Development, Miss Kelbie has extensive public sector experience. She is currently the Director of Operations for the Big Lottery Fund, and was previously the Scotland Director for Community Fund. She has also held the position of member of the Scottish Consumer Council for which she received no remuneration. She holds no other ministerial appointments.
James King - a CIPFA-qualified accountant who is currently a member of the Management Board of Glasgow's Metropolitan College, for which he receives no remuneration. He was previously the Financial Director for the Royal Mail in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Mr King has considerable financial experience in a local government context, having worked for 13 years firstly with Glasgow Council and later with Falkirk Council where he held the posts of Chief Internal Auditor then Assistant Finance Director. He holds no other Ministerial Appointments.
The First Minister said:
"Effective government is crucial if Scotland is to prosper. That is why we set it out as one of the five strategic priorities in our Economic Strategy, published last week. The work of the Accounts Commission has an important part to play. By helping councils and joint boards to manage their resources efficiently the Commission can enhance performance across local government and help ensure best value for the people of Scotland.
"With this in mind I am delighted to announce the appointment of three new recruits - John Baillie, Adrienne Kelbie and James King. I know that they are well qualified to give local authorities any assistance they need and to help them achieve the highest standards.
"As chair of the board I'm confident that John Baillie's extensive experience will allow him to deliver the financial stewardship necessary to make sure our services achieve excellence. I welcome all three to work in the pursuit of financial success."
All the posts are part-time: the Chair position attracts a remuneration of £27,460 per annum for a time commitment of 91 days per year, and the member posts attract a remuneration of £4,500 for a time commitment of 1 to 1.5 days a month.
The main function of the Accounts Commission is to secure the audit of local authorities in Scotland and to help those bodies to achieve Best Value in their activities, although its remit is expected to develop as the policy landscape moves towards an outcome based approach. The Commission also has powers to hold public hearings into the conduct of local authorities, councillors and officers
Ministerial public appointments are made in accordance with the Commissioner for Public Appointments in Scotland's Code of Practice.
All appointments are made on merit and political activity plays no part in the selection process. However, in accordance with the original Nolan recommendations, there is a requirement for appointees' political activity (if there is any to be declared) to be made public. No political activity in the last five years has been declared by the new appointees.