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On January 17, the RA NA Standing Committee on Financial-Credit and Budgetary Affairs jointly with the German Federal Enterprise for International Cooperation (GIZ) organized discussion on the theme Parliamentary Public Accounts (Subcommittee) Committee (PAC) and Parliamentary Post-Legislative Control.

The RA NA deputies, representatives of the RA President’s Staff, the RA Control Chamber, the RA Government, the civil society, the international organizations and mass media took part in the event.

Let us note that in the context of the parliamentary functions of the budgetary control the RA NA Standing Committee on Financial-Credit and Budgetary Affairs envisages creating Public Accounts Sub-Committee (PASC), the aim is to examine the reports of the Supreme Audit Institution and the direct interaction with the latter. The PASC to be created will have a key role to play in ensuring transparency and accountability in the way that the Government agencies allocate, spend and manage their finances.

The GIZ Country Director Armenia, PFM in the SC programme Director Anne Kempa, the Representative of the United Kingdom Embassy to the RA Oksanna Abrahamyan, and the Adviser on Economic Governance and Public Administration Reforms of the Delegation of the European Union to Armenia Alessandro Zanotta had welcoming remarks in the discussion.

According to the GIZ Country Director Armenia Anne Kempa, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) functioning in the parliaments follows the conclusions of the external auditor: it is one of the main legislative means, which assists the parliament to implement its constitutional mission. Speaking about the reforms being implemented in the sphere of the state finance management in Armenia, Mrs Kempa has underlined that to register progress and to succeed all counters’ involvement is necessary.

In the word of the Representative of the United Kingdom Embassy to the RA Oksanna Abrahamyan, the Public Accounts Sub-Committee is one of the most important tools, which fosters the effective implementation of the public finance management system. It has been noted that according to the Westminster model in the parliaments Public Accounts Committee is an oversight committee. It promotes to carry out effective legislative oversight, providing the management of state expenditures and finance management, transparency and accountability. In many parliamentary systems the PAC is observed as a legislative mechanism for implementing budgetary oversight fostering transparent and accounting management. It has been noted that tremendous work is done to boost the public finance management system, and financial means have been invested and is being invested. The speaker has highlighted the creation of the Public Accounts Sub-Committee by the RA NA Standing Committee on Financial-Credit and Budgetary Affairs, aiming at ensuring the transparency and accountability of the expenditures and finance management of the government bodies, which is an important guarantee for getting qualified services for the sum paid by the taxpayer.

The Chair of the RA NA Standing Committee on Financial-Credit and Budgetary Affairs Gagik Minasyan, touching upon the reformed RA Constitution and the parliamentary oversight stemming from the NA Rules of Procedure, has noted that the amended Constitution has raised the oversight functions of the parliament to a new level, and according to the amended NA Rules of Procedure law, the Committees have the right to set up Sub-Committees inside them. Gagik Minasyan expressed conviction that during the discussion it would be possible to get informed the international best experience in the sphere.

The Member of the RA Control Chamber (CC) Seyran Avagyan, positively assessing the creation of the Public Accounts Sub-Committee in the RA National Assembly, at the same time presented his concerns and the expectations of the CC from the Committee.

The Former Deputy Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly, Former Chair of the Audit Committee of the Northern Ireland Assembly John Dallat, presenting the experience of his country in the sphere, has emphasized the team work of the members of the Public Accounts Committee, as well as training to develop their analytical skills.

Talking about the post legislative parliamentary oversight, the Former Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly’s Finance Committee John McCallister has stated that the oversight activity requires keeping under attention all the existing problems.

The key speakers also answered the participants’ questions, which related to the functions and the authorities of the Sub-Committee to be created, the presentation of the conclusions on the discussion of the issues in the Sub-Committee, the change of the programmes of the public expenditures and their efficiency.