Environmental Performance Auditing In The Public Sector

Environment and sustainable development challenges are a matter of global concern. Trillions of dollars of mostly public money are invested every year in domestic and international policies and programs to address these?challenges. The effectiveness of these policies and programs is critical to environmental sustainability. Performance audits that examine the effectiveness of governmental policies and programs heavily influence their implementation. Despite this, performance auditing in the environment field?has received very little academic attention. This book takes a closer look at performance auditing of public sector environmental policies and programs. It examines trends in global environmental performance auditing; and how it is currently practiced drawing on a global survey and case studies from Canada, India and Australia. In doing so, it identifies issues and challenges faced by Supreme Audit Institutions in undertaking these performance audits. This book will be of interest to students, scholars and practitioners of sustainable development, environmental auditing and public sector auditing as well as to donor organisations engaged in these areas.

PPP/PFI contracts often share a number of features: they run over a very long period of time; they are conceived without a complete understanding of how requirements may change and despite the rhetoric they tend to create a context where dispute and litigation rather than partnership are the norm. In this environment, effective auditing is essential to ensure that projects are delivering what the end-user requires. Audits are both a public sector right, and a matter of good management sense. Performance Auditing of Public Sector Property Contracts is a practical guide to performance auditing for public sector property managers with a series of guidelines for auditors of public sector property contracts. The book concentrates on Facilities Management contracts. Lori Keating explains the basis for the process; how to retain balance, independence and rigour and how to audit intangible performance measures and other tricky areas. The book follows an audit process from commencement to conclusion, and contains a discussion of factors that contribute to the success of any audit. It is essential reading for public sector auditors, PPP project managers and contractors.

This publication considers the relationship between performance auditing and public sector modernisation and the extent to which performance auditing could or should improve the performance of public sector organisations.

PPP/PFI contracts often share a number of features: they run over a very long period of time; they are conceived without a complete understanding of how requirements may change and despite the rhetoric they tend to create a context where dispute and litigation rather than partnership are the norm. In this environment, effective auditing is essential to ensure that projects are delivering what the end-user requires. Audits are both a public sector right, and a matter of good management sense. Performance Auditing of Public Sector Property Contracts is a practical guide to performance auditing for public sector property managers with a series of guidelines for auditors of public sector property contracts. The book concentrates on Facilities Management contracts. Lori Keating explains the basis for the process; how to retain balance, independence and rigour and how to audit intangible performance measures and other tricky areas. The book follows an audit process from commencement to conclusion, and contains a discussion of factors that contribute to the success of any audit. It is essential reading for public sector auditors, PPP project managers and contractors.

This timely Handbook examines performance management research specific to the public sector and its contexts, and provides suggestions for future developments in the field. It demonstrates the need for performance management to be reconceptualized as a core component of business both within and across organizations, and how it must be embedded in both strategic decision-making and as a day-to-day leadership and management practice in order to be effective.

Sustainable development is still seen by authorities as an abstract concept. Local Environmental Auditing will help put it into practice. The book provides a comprehensive guide to monitoring the state of the local environment and establishing the impacts of local actions on global issues, and shows how current local authority policy and practice can be adapted to recognize environmental priorities. The authors provide both a guide to and an assessment of the subject: they link the processes with the issues, with specific information on carrying out the audit (including checklists, case studies and standards) and a detailed discussion of the issues and choices which local authorities may face. Clearly structured and accessible, this will be an essential handbook, both for local government departments and other local organizations, and students in a wide range of subjects, including environmental science and health, town planning, urban and rural studies, social science and politics.

This timely handbook provides a current and comprehensive examination of integrated reporting, both practical and research-based. It offers insights and different perspectives from more than 60 authors, including representatives of the International Integrated Reporting Council, Integrated Reporting Committee of South Africa, professional bodies and audit firms, as well as leading academics in the fields of integrated reporting, sustainability reporting and corporate social responsibility. This collected work provides an in-depth review of the development of integrated reporting, with a focus on the interpretation and guidance provided by the International Integrated Reporting Council. It encourages the development of new thinking and research topics in the area of integrated reporting (such as links between integrated reporting and reports focused on financial and corporate social responsibility matters), as well as showcasing how integrated reporting issues are seen and practiced in different parts of the world. The chapters include reviews of the most recent research, practitioner viewpoints, conceptual pieces, case studies and disclosure analyses. Accessible and engaging, this handbook will be an invaluable overview for those new to the field or those who are interested in ensuring they are up to date with its developments, as well as those who are concerned with how to construct an integrated report.

The Environmental Audit Committee was set up by the House of Commons in 1997 reflecting a Manifesto commitment by the incoming Labour Government. This report from the Committee takes stock of how effective the environmental audit of government has been and draws conclusions on the performance of both the government and the work of the Committee. The impact of the Committee and follow up work is given as an annex to the report. The overall view taken is that the government has a long way to go on the expectations it has raised on the environment and sustainable development. Firstly, the government has set few targets. It needs to set measurable targets, i.e. with a baseline, milestones and responsibilities for reporting and to inject some rigour into the reporting requirements of its departments, agencies and associated public bodies. Secondly, for the parliamentary environmental audit initiative to be properly effective, an independent environmental audit facility should be set up. The Committee does not have the resources to undertake this role. The report recommends that an environmental auditor general should be established within the National Audit Office, mirroring arrangements for performance audit of public spending. A draft Bill to this effect follows the report. The report also recommends that the government works with international organisations to make 'measuring national performance' a theme of reporting progress on Agenda 21 at Rio+10 in 2002 and, to contribute to the examination of how best to measure progress on sustainable development.