FINANCE GUIDANCE NOTE 2008/01
SPFM AMENDMENTS
The purpose of this note is to announce recent substantive amendments to the Scottish Public Finance Manual (SPFM). The amendments are as follows:
- The section on Fees & Charges has been reviewed and updated. Accountable Officers should be able to defend the provision of a commercial service as being an appropriate use of resources. And any financial objectives of less than full cost recovery for statutory services and for commercial services provided in competition with the private sector must be approved in advance by the responsible Cabinet Secretary / Minister and cleared by the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth.
- The section on Banking has been revised. It now includes a requirement for all bodies to which the SPFM is directly applicable, including bodies sponsored by the Scottish Government, to have their core bank accounts with the Office of HM Paymaster General (OPG), except where the Scottish Government's Financial Management Branch (FMB) can be persuaded that the holding of such an account would not be cost effective. A commercial bank account may only be opened following the prior approval of the FMB.
- The section on Disposal of Tangible Fixed Assets has been updated to provide clarification on a number of points including the disposal of assets at less than market value, the Crichel Down rules and the Guidelines for the Transfer of Property within the Scottish Public Sector.
Scottish Government Finance Directorate
March 2008