# Public Accounts Committee (United Kingdom)

The Committee of Public Accounts is a select committee of the British House of Commons. It is responsible for overseeing government expenditures, and to ensure they are effective and honest. The committee is seen as a crucial mechanism for ensuring transparency and accountability in government financial operations, having been described by Professor the Lord Hennessy as "the queen of the select committees...[which] by its very existence exert[s] a cleansing effect in all government departments".

## Overview

The recommendation for the creation of a committee to oversee government accounts was first put forward in 1857 by a small group of interested Members of Parliament led by Sir Francis Baring. The structure and function of the PAC date back to reforms initiated by William Ewart Gladstone, when he was British Chancellor of the Exchequer in the 1860s. The first Public Accounts Committee was established in 1862 by a resolution of the British House of Commons:
   There shall be a standing committee designated "The Committee of Public Accounts"; for the examination of the Accounts showing the appropriation of sums granted by Parliament to meet the Public Expenditure, to consist of nine members, who shall be nominated at the commencement of every Session, and of whom five shall be a quorum.
The form has since been replicated in virtually all Commonwealth of Nations and many non-Commonwealth countries. A minister from His Majesty's Treasury sits on the committee but, by convention, does not attend hearings. The Chair of the committee is always drawn from the main opposition party and is usually a former senior Minister.
The Exchequer and Audit Departments Act 1866 appointed The Committee of Public Accounts to oversee the work of the Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG) The Committee continues to be assisted by the C&AG who is a permanent witness at its hearings, along with his staff of the National Audit Office, who provide briefings on each report and assist in the preparation of the Committee's own reports.

## Membership

Membership of the committee is as follows:
| Member | Party | Constituency |
| Geoffrey Clifton-Brown MP (Chair) | Conservative | North Cotswolds |
| Clive Betts MP | Labour | Sheffield South East |
| Nesil Caliskan MP | Labour | Barking |
| Luke Charters MP | Labour | York Outer |
| Anna Dixon MP | Labour | Shipley |
| Peter Fortune MP | Conservative | Bromley and Biggin Hill |
| Rachel Gilmour MP | Liberal Democrats | Tiverton and Minehead |
| Sarah Green MP | Liberal Democrats | Chesham and Amersham |
| Sarah Hall MP | Labour | Warrington South |
| Lloyd Hatton MP | Labour | South Dorset |
| Chris Kane MP | Labour | Stirling and Stratahallan |
| James Murray MP | Labour | Ealing North |
| Sarah Olney MP | Liberal Democrats | Richmond Park |
| Rebecca Paul MP | Conservative | Reigate |
| Michael Payne MP | Labour | Gedling |
| Oliver Ryan MP | Independent (elected as Labour) | Burnley |

## 2019-2024 Parliament

The chair was elected on 27 January 2020, with the members of the committee being announced on 2 March 2020.
| Member | Party | Constituency |
| Dame Meg Hillier DBE MP (Chair) | Labour and Co-op | Hackney South and Shoreditch |
| Gareth Bacon MP | Conservative Party | Orpington |
| Kemi Badenoch MP | Conservative Party | Saffron Walden |
| Olivia Blake MP | Labour Party | Sheffield Hallam |
| Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown MP | Conservative Party | The Cotswolds |
| Cheryl Gillan MP | Conservative Party | Chesham and Amersham |
| Peter Grant MP | Scottish National Party | Glenrothes |
| Richard Holden MP | Conservative Party | North West Durham |
| Sir Bernard Jenkin MP | Conservative Party | Harwich and North Essex |
| Craig Mackinlay MP | Conservative Party | South Thanet |
| Shabana Mahmood MP | Labour Party | Birmingham Ladywood |
| Gagan Mohindra MP | Conservative Party | South West Hertfordshire |
| Sarah Olney MP | Liberal Democrats | Richmond Park |
| Bridget Phillipson MP | Labour Party | Houghton and Sunderland South |
| Nick Smith MP | Labour Party | Blaenau Gwent |
| James Wild MP | Conservative | North West Norfolk |

### Changes 2019-2024

| Date | Outgoing Member & Party | Outgoing Member & Party | Constituency | → | New Member & Party | New Member & Party | Constituency | Source |
| 21 September 2020 | | Bridget Phillipson MP (Labour) | Houghton and Sunderland South | → | | Barry Gardiner MP (Labour) | Brent North | Hansard |
| 9 November 2020 | | Gagan Mohindra MP (Conservative) | South West Hertfordshire | → | | Shaun Bailey MP (Conservative) | West Bromwich West | Hansard |
| 4 April 2021 | | Cheryl Gillan MP (Conservative) | Chesham and Amersham | → | Vacant | Vacant | Vacant | Death of member |
| 20 April 2021 | | Shabana Mahmood MP (Labour) | Birmingham Ladywood | → | | Dan Carden MP (Labour) | Liverpool Walton | Hansard |
| 25 May 2021 | | Bernard Jenkin MP (Conservative) | Harwich and North Essex | → | | Mark Francois MP (Conservative) | Rayleigh and Wickford | Hansard |
| 25 May 2021 | Vacant | Vacant | Vacant | → | | Antony Higginbotham MP (Conservative) | Burnley | Hansard |
| 13 July 2021 | | Olivia Blake MP (Labour) | Sheffield Hallam | → | | Kate Osamor MP (Labour) | Edmonton | Hansard |
| 30 November 2021 | | Kemi Badenoch MP (Conservative) | Saffron Walden | → | | Helen Whately MP (Conservative) | Faversham and Mid Kent | Hansard |
| 8 February 2022 | | Barry Gardiner MP (Labour) | Brent North | → | | Kate Green MP (Labour) | Stretford and Urmston | Hansard |
| 15 March 2022 | | Gareth Bacon MP (Conservative) | Orpington | → | | Louie French MP (Conservative) | Old Bexley and Sidcup | Hansard |
| 15 March 2022 | | Richard Holden MP (Conservative) | North West Durham | → | | Angela Richardson MP (Conservative) | Guildford | Hansard |
| 4 July 2022 | | Kate Osamor MP (Labour) | Edmonton | → | | Olivia Blake MP (Labour) | Sheffield Hallam | Hansard |
| 17 October 2022 | | Helen Whately MP (Conservative) | Faversham and Mid Kent | → | | Felicity Buchan MP (Conservative) | Kensington | Hansard |
| 25 October 2022 | | Shaun Bailey MP (Conservative) | West Bromwich West | → | | Jonathan Djanogly MP (Conservative) | Huntingdonshire | Hansard |
| 25 October 2022 | | Antony Higginbotham MP (Conservative) | Burnley | → | | Anne Marie Morris MP (Conservative) | Newton Abbot | Hansard |
| 25 October 2022 | | Craig Mackinlay MP (Conservative) | South Thanet | → | Vacant | Vacant | Vacant | | | Hansard |
| 10 November 2022 | | Kate Green MP (Labour) | Stretford and Urmston | → | Vacant | Vacant | Vacant | Resignation of member from Parliament |
| 15 November 2022 | | Felicity Buchan MP (Conservative) | Kensington | → | | James Cartlidge MP (Conservative) | South Suffolk | Hansard |
| 15 November 2022 | Vacant | Vacant | Vacant | → | | Flick Drummond MP (Conservative) | Meon Valley | Hansard |
| 25 November 2022 | | James Wild MP (Conservative) | North West Norfolk | → | Vacant | Vacant | Vacant | Hansard |
| 6 December 2022 | | Angela Richardson MP (Conservative) | Guildford | → | | Simon Clarke MP (Conservative) | Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland | Hansard |
| 6 December 2022 | | Vacant | Vacant | Vacant | | Jill Mortimer MP (Conservative) | Hartlepool | Hansard |
| 24 April 2023 | Vacant | Vacant | Vacant | → | → | | Ashley Dalton MP (Labour) | West Lancashire | Hansard |
| 6 June 2023 | | James Cartlidge MP (Conservative) | South Suffolk | → | | Gareth Davies MP (Conservative) | Grantham and Stamford | Hansard |
| 26 June 2023 | | Louie French MP (Conservative) | Old Bexley and Sidcup | → | | Ben Lake MP (Plaid Cymru) | Ceredigion | Hansard |
| 11 December 2023 | | Ashley Dalton MP (Labour) | West Lancashire | → | | Paula Barker MP (Labour) | Liverpool Wavertree | Hansard |
| 11 December 2023 | | Jill Mortimer MP (Conservative) | Hartlepool | → | | Sarah Owen MP (Labour) | Luton North | Hansard |
| 11 December 2023 | | Nick Smith MP (Labour) | Blaenau Gwent | → | | Sir Jeremy Quin MP (Conservative) | Horsham | Hansard |
| 18 December 2023 | | Simon Clarke MP (Conservative) | Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland | → | | Gary Sambrook MP (Conservative) | Birmingham Northfield | Hansard |
| 29 January 2024 | | Dan Carden MP (Labour) | Liverpool Walton | → | | Marie Rimmer MP (Labour) | St Helens South and Whiston | Hansard |
| 18 March 2024 | | Sir Jeremy Quin MP (Conservative) | Horsham | → | | Matt Warman MP (Conservative) | Boston and Skegness | Hansard |
| 7 May 2024 | | Flick Drummond MP (Conservative) | Meon Valley | → | | Richard Fuller MP (Conservative) | North East Bedfordshire | Hansard |

## 2017–2019 Parliament

The chair was elected on 12 July 2017, with members being announced on 11 September 2017.
| Member | Party | Constituency |
| Meg Hillier MP (Chair) | Labour and Co-op | Hackney South and Shoreditch |
| Bim Afolami MP | Conservative | Hitchin and Harpenden |
| Heidi Allen MP | Conservative | South Cambridgeshire |
| Geoffrey Clifton-Brown MP | Conservative | The Cotswolds |
| Martyn Day MP | SNP | Linlithgow and East Falkirk |
| Chris Evans MP | Labour and Co-op | Islwyn |
| Caroline Flint MP | Labour | Don Valley |
| Luke Graham MP | Conservative | Ochil and South Perthshire |
| Andrew Jones MP | Conservative | Harrogate and Knaresborough |
| Gillian Keegan MP | Conservative | Chichester |
| Shabana Mahmood MP | Labour | Birmingham Ladywood |
| Nigel Mills MP | Conservative | Amber Valley |
| Layla Moran MP | Liberal Democrats | Oxford West and Abingdon |
| Bridget Phillipson MP | Labour | Houghton and Sunderland South |
| Gareth Snell MP | Labour and Co-op | Stoke-on-Trent Central |

### Changes 2017–2019

| Date | Outgoing Member & Party | Constituency | → | New Member & Party | New Member & Party | Constituency | Source |
| 5 February 2018 | Andrew Jones MP (Conservative) | Harrogate and Knaresborough | → | | Robert Jenrick MP (Conservative) | Newark | Hansard |
| 20 February 2018 | Heidi Allen MP (Conservative) | South Cambridgeshire | → | | Anne Marie Morris MP (Conservative) | Newton Abbot | Hansard |
| 20 February 2018 | Nigel Mills MP (Conservative) | Amber Valley | → | | Lee Rowley MP (Conservative) | North East Derbyshire | Hansard |
| 9 July 2018 | Martyn Day MP (SNP) | Linlithgow and East Falkirk | → | | Douglas Chapman MP (SNP) | Dunfermline and West Fife | Hansard |
| 22 October 2018 | Bim Afolami MP (Conservative) | Hitchin and Harpenden | → | | Chris Davies MP (Conservative) | Brecon and Radnorshire | Hansard |
| 22 October 2018 | Luke Graham MP (Conservative) | Ochil and South Perthshire | → | | Nigel Mills MP (Conservative) | Amber Valley | Hansard |
| 3 December 2018 | Gillian Keegan MP (Conservative) | Chichester | → | | Anne-Marie Trevelyan MP (Conservative) | Berwick-upon-Tweed | Hansard |
| 21 June 2019 | Chris Davies MP (Conservative) | Brecon and Radnorshire | → | Vacant | Vacant | Vacant | Recall of member from Parliament |

## 2015–2017 Parliament

The chair was elected on 18 June 2015, with members being announced on 7 July 2015.
| Member | Party | Constituency |
| Meg Hillier MP (Chair) | Labour and Co-op | Hackney South and Shoreditch |
| Richard Bacon MP | Conservative | South Norfolk |
| Harriett Baldwin MP | Conservative | West Worcestershire |
| Deidre Brock MP | SNP | Edinburgh North and Leith |
| Kevin Foster MP | Conservative | Torbay |
| Stewart Jackson MP | Conservative | Peterborough |
| Clive Lewis MP | Labour | Norwich South |
| Nigel Mills MP | Conservative | Amber Valley |
| David Mowat MP | Conservative | Warrington South |
| Teresa Pearce MP | Labour | Erith and Thamesmead |
| Stephen Phillips MP | Conservative | Sleaford and North Hykeham |
| John Pugh MP | Liberal Democrats | Southport |
| Nick Smith MP | Labour | Blaenau Gwent |
| Karin Smyth MP | Labour | Bristol South |
| Anne-Marie Trevelyan MP | Conservative | Berwick-upon-Tweed |

### Changes 2015–2017

| Date | Outgoing Member & Party | Outgoing Member & Party | Constituency | → | New Member & Party | New Member & Party | Constituency | Source |
| 26 October 2015 | | Clive Lewis MP (Labour) | Norwich South | → | | Chris Evans MP (Labour and Co-op) | Islwyn | Hansard |
| 26 October 2015 | | Teresa Pearce MP (Labour) | Erith and Thamesmead | → | | Caroline Flint MP (Labour) | Don Valley | Hansard |
| 26 October 2015 | | Nick Smith MP (Labour) | Blaenau Gwent | → | | Bridget Phillipson MP (Labour) | Houghton and Sunderland South | Hansard |
| 12 September 2016 | | Deidre Brock MP (SNP) | Edinburgh North and Leith | → | | Phil Boswell MP (SNP) | Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill | Hansard |
| 10 October 2016 | | Harriett Baldwin MP (Conservative) | West Worcestershire | → | | Simon Kirby MP (Conservative) | Brighton Kemptown | Hansard |
| 31 October 2016 | | Stewart Jackson MP (Conservative) | Peterborough | → | | Charlie Elphicke MP (Conservative) | Dover | Hansard |
| 31 October 2016 | | David Mowat MP (Conservative) | Brighton Kemptown | → | | Kwasi Kwarteng MP (Conservative) | Spelthorne | Hansard |
| 4 November 2016 | | Stephen Phillips MP (Conservative) | Sleaford and North Hykeham | → | Vacant | Vacant | Vacant | Resignation of member from Parliament |
| 28 November 2016 | Vacant | Vacant | Vacant | → | | Anne Marie Morris MP (Conservative) | Newton Abbot | Hansard |

## 2010–2015 Parliament

The chair was elected on 10 June 2010, with members being announced on 12 July 2010.
| Member | Party | Constituency |
| Margaret Hodge MP (Chair) | Labour | Barking |
| Richard Bacon MP | Conservative | South Norfolk |
| Steve Barclay MP | Conservative | North East Cambridgeshire |
| Jackie Doyle-Price MP | Conservative | Thurrock |
| Justine Greening MP | Conservative | Putney |
| Matt Hancock MP | Conservative | West Suffolk |
| Chris Heaton-Harris MP | Conservative | Daventry |
| Jo Johnson MP | Conservative | Orpington |
| Eric Joyce MP | Labour | Falkirk |
| Anne McGuire MP | Labour | Stirling |
| Austin Mitchell MP | Labour | Great Grimsby |
| Nick Smith MP | Labour | Blaenau Gwent |
| Ian Swales MP | Liberal Democrats | Redcar |
| James Wharton MP | Conservative | Stockton South |

### Changes 2010–2015

| Date | Outgoing Member & Party | Constituency | → | New Member & Party | Constituency | Source |
| 2 November 2010 | Eric Joyce MP (Labour) | Falkirk | → | Stella Creasy MP (Labour) | Walthamstow | Hansard |
| 24 October 2011 | Stella Creasy MP (Labour) | Walthamstow | → | Meg Hillier MP (Labour) | Hackney South and Shoreditch | Hansard |
| 24 October 2011 | Anne McGuire MP (Labour) | Stirling | → | Fiona Mactaggart MP (Labour) | Slough | Hansard |
| 31 October 2011 | Justine Greening MP (Conservative) | Putney | → | Chloe Smith MP (Conservative) | Norwich North | Hansard |
| 27 February 2012 | Jo Johnson MP (Conservative) | Orpington | → | Stewart Jackson MP (Conservative) | Peterborough | Hansard |
| 4 September 2012 | Chloe Smith MP (Conservative) | Norwich North | → | Sajid Javid MP (Conservative) | Bromsgrove | |
| 12 November 2012 | Matt Hancock MP (Conservative) | West Suffolk | → | Guto Bebb MP (Conservative) | Aberconwy | Hansard |
| 12 November 2012 | James Wharton MP (Conservative) | Stockton South | → | Justin Tomlinson MP (Conservative) | North Swindon | Hansard |
| 25 November 2013 | Sajid Javid MP (Conservative) | Bromsgrove | → | Nicky Morgan MP (Conservative) | Loughborough | Hansard |
| 7 April 2014 | Fiona Mactaggart MP (Labour) | Slough | → | Anne McGuire MP (Labour) | Stirling | Hansard |
| 12 May 2014 | Nicky Morgan MP (Conservative) | Loughborough | → | Andrea Leadsom MP (Conservative) | South Northamptonshire | Hansard |
| 23 June 2014 | Steve Barclay MP (Conservative) | North East Cambridgeshire | → | David Burrowes MP (Conservative) | Enfield Southgate | Hansard |
| 30 June 2014 | Ian Swales MP (Liberal Democrats) | Redcar | → | John Pugh MP (Liberal Democrats) | Southport | Hansard |
| 8 September 2014 | Justin Tomlinson MP (Conservative) | North Swindon | → | Stephen Phillips MP (Conservative) | Sleaford and North Hykeham | Hansard |
| 8 December 2014 | Jackie Doyle-Price MP (Conservative) | Thurrock | → | Stephen Hammond MP (Conservative) | Wimbledon | Hansard |

## Chairs (1861–present)

House of Commons standing orders give the party of the official Opposition the right to chair the committee.
| Year | Chairman | Party |
| 1861–63 | Sir Francis Tornhill Baring | Liberal |
| 1864–1866 | Rt Hon Edward Pleydell-Bouverie | Liberal |
| 1866 | Mr George Sclater-Booth | Conservative |
| 1867–68 | Mr Hugh C E Childers | Liberal |
| 1869 | Mr William Pollard-Urquhart | Liberal |
| 1870–71 | Rt Hon George Ward Hunt | Conservative |
| 1872–73 | Mr George Sclater-Booth | Conservative |
| 1874–76 | Rt Hon John George Dodson | Liberal |
| 1877–1880 | Lord Frederick Cavendish | Liberal |
| 1884–85 | Sir Henry Holland | Conservative |
| 1886 | Sir John Eldon Gorst | Conservative |
| 1887–88 | Sir John Lubbock | Liberal Unionist |
| 1889–92 | Sir Ughtred Kay-Shuttleworth | Liberal |
| 1893 | Mr Edmond Wodehouse | Liberal Unionist |
| 1894–95 | Sir Richard Temple | Conservative |
| 1896–1900 | Mr Arthur O'Connor | Irish National |
| 1901–05 | Rt Hon Sir Arthur Hayter | Liberal |
| 1906–08 | Rt Hon Victor Christian William Cavendish | Liberal Unionist |
| 1908–18 | Col Robert Williams | Unionist |
| 1919–20 | Rt Hon Sir Francis Dyke Acland | Liberal |
| 1921–22 | Mr Aneurin Williams | Liberal |
| 1923 | Mr Frederick William Jowett JP | Labour |
| 1924 | Lt Col Rt Hon Walter Edward Guinness | Conservative |
| 1924–29 | Rt Hon Willian Graham JP | Labour |
| 1929–31 | Mr Arthur Michael Samuel | Conservative |
| 1931–38 | Mr Morgan Jones | Labour |
| 1938–41 | Rt Hon Frederick William Pethick-Lawrence | Labour |
| 1941–43 | Lt Col Rt Hon Walter Elliot | Unionist |
| 1943–45 | Lt Col Sir Assheton Pownall OBE TD | Unionist |
| 1946–48 | Rt Hon Osbert Peake | Conservative |
| 1948–50 | Rt Hon Ralph Assheton | Conservative |
| 1950–51 | Sir Ronald Cross and Rt Hon Charles Waterhouse | Conservative |
| 1951–52 | Mr John Edwards | Labour |
| 1952–59 | Sir George Benson | Labour |
| 1959–63 | Rt Hon Harold Wilson | Labour |
| 1963–64 | Rt Hon A.L.N. Douglas Houghton | Labour |
| 1964–70 | Rt Hon John Boyd-Carpenter | Conservative |
| 1970–73 | Rt Hon Harold Lever | Labour |
| 1972–73 | Rt Hon Edmund Dell (Acting chair during Harold Lever's illness) | Labour |
| 1974–79 | Rt Hon Edward DuCann | Conservative |
| 1979–83 | Rt Hon Joel Barnett | Labour |
| 1983–97 | Rt Hon Robert Sheldon | Labour |
| 1997–2001 | Rt Hon David Davis | Conservative |
| 2001–10 | Rt Hon Sir Edward Leigh | Conservative |
| 2010–15 | Rt Hon Dame Margaret Hodge | Labour |
| 2015–24 | Dame Meg Hillier | Labour and Co-operative |
| 2024–present | Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown | Conservative |