The Role of the Scottish Executive

Upon being approached by the Contractor of a refinancing proposal, Procuring Bodies should:-

i.  notify the Scottish Executive Financial Partnerships Unit or Private Finance & Capital Unit of the proposal and clarify future Scottish Executive review requirements;

ii.  make initial contact with the Refinancing Taskforce and interact as noted above;

iii.  ensure appropriate VfM guidance is followed in negotiating and agreeing proposals; and

iv.  submit a Key Stage Review to the Scottish Executive for review. 

This process will facilitate appropriate Scottish Executive approvals in respect of a Refinancing and should satisfy the requirements of Audit Scotland. It is likely that a Refinancing is going to be of significant interest to Audit Scotland and proposals should be discussed with your external auditor, as they may wish to review the robustness of Value for Money / Best Value comparisons.