Heald D, Geaughan N
Public Money & Management, (UK), Jul-Sep 97 (17/3)
Start page: 11 No of pages: 6

Starts with drawing some conclusions regarding technical issues surrounding the use of public finance in public services: that it will bring cost savings and be more cost-effective than public finance; that there has to be clarity regarding value-for-money; that there are differences between projects with genuine third-party payers and those where costs fall on the budget. Discusses the scoring of public expenditure and the rules that the UK Treasury applies; considers the use of accruals accounting (resource accounting and budgeting) by the Treasury and the implications for projects under the Private Finance Initiative (PFI). Looks at the use of accruals accounting in the context of generally accepted accounting principles, and reflects on the continuing commitment to scoring and accounting for the PFI; suggests, inter alia, that the PFI may lead to a waste of resources, and calls for transparency.

Subject(s): PUBLIC SECTOR ACCOUNTING, PRIVATE FINANCE INITIATIVE, ACCOUNTING PRINCIPLES, UNITED KINGDOM, GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTS, TREASURY, PROJECT FINANCE
Database: AFA: Accounting & Finance Abstracts. Style: Technical
Indicators: Research Implication- *, Practice Implication- **, Originality- **, Readability- **, Total Number- ******* Reference: 26AY290
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