Can I thank Mike Hedges for his warm words there? You are right; it does often feel like we are on a treadmill. I know that all of the committees of this Assembly have their work cut out, but I think it’s unusual for committees to change gear as much as we do, from area to area, and sometimes within the committee meeting; whether we’re looking at a health issue or looked-after children, as we will be doing, we are changing constantly. It’s been some years since I’ve been on the Public Accounts Committee as a normal member—if I can use that expression—back in 2008-09. Not that I’m abnormal now, of course, being the Chair, but, well, that’s for you to consider. It was 2008-09 and the committee has changed significantly since then. What’s still the same, of course, is that we’re an unusual committee because we do have the auditor general on board. We do have his advice, we do have his reports, but we do differ from public accounts committees elsewhere—and increasingly so—because we are looking to diversify our work, and not just to take forward the work of the auditor general, but also to take forward our own committee reports as well. On that point, Mike Hedges, I think you’re quite right: it’s not just for us within the committee to suggest that work; it is for other Assembly Members too. This is a forum today. I’m sure that when we bring forward other work, Members would like to bring forward their suggestions, even if it’s just by word of mouth. We are a listening and open committee, and we aim to be increasingly so.

I would thank you, Mike. I know that you’ve been on the committee for some time before me over recent years. I’m also on the Finance Committee with you, so I don’t get that much chance away from you, but you are always there for advice and support. At the start of this Assembly session, when the committee was re-established, we were dealing with lots of inquiries from the previous Public Accounts Committee, which I know did cause confusion, not just with me, but with newer members of the committee as well. We’re moving beyond that now. We are moving towards looking at new work brought forward by the auditor general and new work brought forward by Members as well. But I’m open to suggestions, so please feel free to approach me or other members of the committee at any point to suggest how you would like the Public Accounts Committee to move forward in future.