In June 2006, Scottish Ministers commissioned Professor Lorne Crerar to evaluate the current system of scrutiny of public services in Scotland. By scrutiny we mean regulation, audit, inspection as well as complaint handling. The report was published in September 2007. A copy can be found in the (Crerar Review).
In their response, the Scottish Government announced in January 2008 that it will work with the Parliament and stakeholders, including local government, to make improvements in scrutiny and complaints handling.
To take improvement forward, the Scrutiny Improvement Team supported the work of 5 action groups, overseen by a Programme Board, as well as the work being done by directorates on structural reform.
On November 6 Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth John Swinney made a further statement about changes to structure and also published a supporting document.
The Scottish Government has since issued a response to the recommendations made by the action groups.