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Downturn will last up to 15 years in public sector, says international conference
The impact of global economic problems will be felt for up to 15 years, delegates at an international public finance have claimed at a conference organised by ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) in London.
While many business leaders are reporting some positive signs, the overwhelming majority of finance professionals working in the public sector expect difficulties for at least five years, according to a poll at the Leadership in Public Finance Conference run by ACCA in partnership with the Office for Public Management and Transparency International UK.
Voting at the conference, 40% of delegates said they expected the economic downturn to impact on public services for five years, while nearly 35% thought the sector would suffer for 10 years. Nearly 15% believed that the downturn would have an impact for 15 years or more.
While nearly 30% of the delegates from the UK, mainland Europe, China and Africa thought the worst of the economic downturn was behind us, nearly 50% disagreed.
With public expectations about the quality of public services increasing, 80% of the delegates agreed or strongly agreed that public trust in those services was low, and worryingly, 65% of delegates agreed or strongly agreed that fraud and corruption was on the increase in the sector.
The conference looked at a world view of the economic situation and its impact on the public sector, the future of public sector audit, carbon and green collar issues and unlocking innovation to increase capacity in public services. Speakers included Nenad Pacek, president, Global Success Advisors Ltd; Martin Evans, managing director of audit, Audit Commission, England and Ian Trumper, treasurer, Transparency International UK.
Gillian Fawcett, head of public sector at ACCA, said: 'There is a strong belief in the public sector that it will feel the economic pain longer than the private sector given that governments need to make savings to pay for measures to beat the recession.
'The fact that these cutbacks come at a time when expectations are growing about the quality of public services will create even greater difficulties for staff trying to provide those services on tighter budgets and careful thought needs to be given on how savings might be made with the public sector.'
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For further information please contact:
Colin Davis, ACCA Newsroom +44 (0)20 7059 5738 +44 (0)7720 347 713 colin.davis@accaglobal.com