Commentary on Sections and Schedules Comptroller and Auditor General Section 23: NAO’s expenditure
81.This section sets out the arrangements for the NAO’s expenditure and approval of its estimates.
82.The new NAO will be funded from money voted annually by Parliament for that purpose. There are three exceptions to that. The remuneration packages of the C&AG and the chair of the NAO will both be paid directly from the Consolidated Fund (under section 13(5) and paragraph 6(2) of Schedule 2 respectively) as will any sums necessary to pay for the indemnities given under section 24(1) in respect of liabilities for audits, examinations and inspections carried out as part of the C&AG’s functions.
83.Subsections (2) and (3) provide that the NAO and the C&AG must jointly prepare an estimate of the resources which the NAO requires for each financial year. That estimate must in particular cover the resources that are required for functions of the C&AG, as set out in paragraph 2(1) of Schedule 3.
84.Subsections (4) to (6) provide that the chair of the NAO and the C&AG must jointly submit the estimate to the Public Accounts Commission. The Commission must review the estimate and lay it before the House of Commons with any modifications that it thinks appropriate. In doing this, the Commission must have regard to any advice given by the Public Accounts Committee or the Treasury.