Error of principle

What Is an Error of Principle?

An error of principle is an accounting mistake in which an entry violates a fundamental principle of accounting or a fundamental accounting principle established by a company.

Understanding Error of Principle

There can be several types of accounting errors. Different types of errors in accounting may be classified as: errors of original entry, errors of duplication, errors of omission, errors of commission, errors of entry reversal, compensating errors, and an error of principle.

Companies strive to hire experienced employees and incorporate protocols that help to mitigate accounting errors. However, errors can still happen. If they do occur and are identified, companies and Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) provide guidance for correcting them. Many companies, particularly large companies with complex accounting, may also purchase Errors and Omissions Insurance, which provides some monetary protections if substantial errors are found.

Types of Errors of Principle

Errors of principle are often simply accounting entries recorded in the incorrect account. The amounts are often correct, unlike an error of original entry. Oftentimes, the error of principle is a procedural error, meaning that the value recorded is correct but the entries are made in the wrong accounts. These types of errors can be difficult to identify if they occur because they can still lead to appropriate balancing of debits and credits on the balance sheet, as well as appropriate summations carrying over to the income statement and cash flow statement.

Errors of principle can also be a concern when a company changes an established principle already in processing to another, new principle. From time to time, companies may change certain principles within GAAP parameters to better represent their company’s activities or to integrate a new type of dashboard metrics monitoring system that helps them more efficiently manage the performance measures of a business.

Examples of Errors of Principle

At a base level, accounting clerks are responsible for learning and maintaining a working knowledge of the account categories a company uses on its balance sheet. These categories are particularly important because they lead to the analysis of asset and liability balances on the balance sheet. Account categories also flow over into the income statement where expenses are reported as either direct, indirect, or capital expenses.

The complexity of a company’s balance sheet accounts can affect how easily errors of principle can be to initiate. Most companies keep their balance sheet expense accounts fairly simplified as to avoid the potential for errors of principle. Common expensing accounts for current liabilities include: accounts payable, notes payable, wages payable, and taxes payable. The appropriate expensing entries would be to debit the liability account and credit an asset account. Using the wrong liability accounts or crediting the wrong type of asset account would result in an error of principle. Mixing up the credits and debits or potentially debiting the wrong client account in an accounts receivable transaction can also be common errors.

When a company incorporates a new type of reporting or integrates new account categories within its asset and liability reporting, errors of principle can become more likely. This can happen when a company overhauls its reporting to create new business segments. New business segments may be integrated from time to time as a company grows or enters into a new segment. Taking extra care to ensure that errors of principle do not occur in these transitions will be very important for a company’s accounting success.

Resolving Errors of Principle

Discovering an error of principle usually takes some detective work, since looking at a trial balance, which contains the name of the account and its value, only shows whether debits equal credits. How the error is corrected will depend on the type of error.

Many errors of principle will be detected before a company issues its final financial statements at the end of a reporting period. Errors may be found in the final review of reporting or spotted by financial managers working in conjunction with accounting teams on performance reporting. If an error of principle is identified prior to the release of a final financial report, it can be most easily resolved by making appropriate correcting entries to reverse and appropriately categorize the transaction. In most accounting systems this is a fairly straightforward move that results in a fast resolution.

If an error of principle is identified after final financial statements are released, the Financial Accounting Standards Board requires companies follow Accounting Standards Codification 250 under GAAP to make necessary resolutions. Errors found after financial statement releases can be the most harmful both in cost and reputation. These types of errors will typically require some type of restatement or disclosures for shareholders.

If an error is drastic enough, a company may file a claim for coverage under its Errors and Omissions Insurance Policy, if one is in place. Errors and Omissions Insurance can provide monetary remuneration for errors of principle made by employees, negligence, or company policies.

Что такое принципиальная ошибка?

Принципиальная ошибка – это  бухгалтерская ошибка,  при которой запись нарушает основополагающий принцип бухгалтерского учета или основополагающий принцип бухгалтерского учета, установленный компанией.

Понимание принципиальной ошибки

Бухгалтерских ошибок может быть несколько типов. Различные типы ошибок в бухгалтерском учете могут быть классифицированы как: ошибки первоначальной записи, ошибки дублирования, ошибки упущения, ошибки комиссии, ошибки сторнирования записи, ошибки компенсации и принципиальная ошибка.

Компании стремятся нанимать опытных сотрудников и внедрять протоколы, которые помогают уменьшить ошибки бухгалтерского учета. Однако ошибки все равно могут возникать. Если они действительно возникают и выявляются, компании и Общепринятые принципы бухгалтерского учета (GAAP) предоставляют рекомендации по их исправлению. Многие компании, особенно крупные компании со сложным бухгалтерским учетом, могут также приобрести страховку от ошибок и пропусков, которая обеспечивает некоторую денежную защиту в случае обнаружения существенных ошибок.

Типы принципиальных ошибок

Принципиальные ошибки часто представляют собой просто бухгалтерские записи, внесенные в неправильный счет. Суммы часто верны, в отличие от ошибки первоначального ввода. Часто принципиальной ошибкой является процедурная ошибка, означающая, что записанное значение верное, но записи сделаны в неправильных учетных записях. Ошибки такого типа бывает трудно идентифицировать, если они возникают, потому что они по-прежнему могут привести к соответствующему сальдированию дебетов и кредитов в балансе, а также к переносу соответствующих сумм в отчет о прибылях и убытках и отчет о движении денежных средств.

Принципиальные ошибки также могут вызывать беспокойство, когда компания меняет установленный принцип, уже находящийся в процессе обработки, на другой, новый принцип. Время от времени компании могут изменять определенные принципы в параметрах GAAP, чтобы лучше представлять деятельность своей компании или интегрировать новый тип системы мониторинга показателей информационной панели, которая помогает им более эффективно управлять показателями эффективности бизнеса.

Примеры принципиальных ошибок

На базовом уровне бухгалтеры несут ответственность за изучение и поддержание рабочих знаний о категориях счетов, которые компания использует в своем балансе. Эти категории особенно важны, потому что они приводят к анализу остатков активов и пассивов в балансе. Категории счетов также переходят в отчет о прибылях и убытках, где расходы отражаются как прямые, косвенные или капитальные.

Сложность балансовых отчетов компании может повлиять на то, насколько легко могут быть совершены принципиальные ошибки. Большинство компаний ведут свои балансовые отчеты о расходах довольно упрощенными, чтобы избежать возможных принципиальных ошибок. Общие расходы по текущим обязательствам включают: кредиторскую задолженность, векселя к оплате, задолженность по заработной плате и задолженность по налогам. Соответствующие проводки по расходам будут для дебетования счета обязательств и кредитования счета активов. Использование неправильных счетов пассивов или зачисление средств на счет активов неправильного типа может привести к принципиальной ошибке. Смешивание кредитов и дебетов или возможное дебетование неправильного клиентского счета в транзакции с дебиторской задолженностью также могут быть распространенными ошибками.

Когда компания включает новый тип отчетности или интегрирует новые категории счетов в свою отчетность по активам и пассивам, принципиальные ошибки могут стать более вероятными. Это может произойти, когда компания пересматривает свою отчетность для создания новых бизнес-сегментов. Новые бизнес-сегменты могут время от времени интегрироваться по мере роста компании или выхода в новый сегмент. Особое внимание к тому, чтобы не допустить возникновения принципиальных ошибок при таких переходах, будет очень важно для успеха бухгалтерского учета компании.

Устранение принципиальных ошибок

Выявление принципиальной ошибки обычно требует некоторой детективной работы, поскольку просмотр  пробного баланса, который содержит название учетной записи и ее стоимость, показывает только, были ли списаны равные кредиты. Способ исправления ошибки будет зависеть от типа ошибки.

Многие принципиальные ошибки будут обнаружены до того, как компания выпустит свою окончательную финансовую отчетность в конце отчетного периода. Ошибки могут быть обнаружены в окончательной проверке отчетности или обнаружены финансовыми менеджерами, работающими совместно с бухгалтерскими группами над отчетностью о производительности. Если принципиальная ошибка выявляется до выпуска окончательного финансового отчета, ее проще всего устранить, сделав соответствующие корректирующие записи, чтобы сторнировать и соответствующим образом классифицировать операцию. В большинстве систем бухгалтерского учета это довольно простой шаг, который приводит к быстрому разрешению проблемы.

Если после выпуска окончательной финансовой отчетности выявляется принципиальная ошибка, Совет по стандартам финансового учета требует, чтобы компании следовали Кодификации стандартов бухгалтерского учета 250 согласно GAAP для принятия необходимых решений. Ошибки, обнаруженные после публикации финансовой отчетности, могут быть самыми опасными как с точки зрения затрат, так и с точки зрения репутации. Ошибки такого типа обычно требуют пересмотра или раскрытия информации для акционеров.

Если ошибка является достаточно серьезной, компания может подать иск о покрытии в соответствии со своим полисом страхования ошибок и пропусков, если таковой имеется. Страхование от ошибок и пропусков может обеспечить денежное вознаграждение за принципиальные ошибки, допущенные сотрудниками, халатность или политику компании.

Asked by: Lavern Wolf

Score: 4.5/5
(13 votes)

An error of principle is an accounting mistake in which an entry violates a fundamental principle of accounting or a fundamental accounting principle established by a company.

What is the error of omission and error of principle?

The error of omission refers to the error in which a transaction is not at all recorded in the books, either completely or partially. … Errors of principle indicate the error of recording a transaction against the basic convention or principle of accounting.

What is error of principle in trial balance?

An error of principle is when the entries are made to the correct amount, and the appropriate side (debit or credit), as with an error of commission, but the wrong type of account is used. For example, if fuel costs (an expense account), are debited to stock (an asset account). This will not affect the totals.

What are the types of error in accounting?

Types of accounting errors include: Error of omission — a transaction that is not recorded. Error of commission — a transaction that is calculated incorrectly. … Error of principle — a transaction that is not in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles ( GAAP).

Which of the following is not an error of principle?

Explanation: While doing the accounting, if the basic rule of accounting is not followed, there is an error of principle. For example, purchase of machinery is debited to purchases account. Its an error of principle as capital expenditure is debited as revenue expenditure.

32 related questions found

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The resource budget contains a separate control total for “near cash” expenditure, that is expenditure such as pay and current grants which impacts directly on the measure of the golden rule.

This paper provides background information on the framework for the planning and control of public expenditure in the UK which has been operated since the 1998 Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR). It sets out the different classifications of spending for budgeting purposes and why these distinctions have been adopted. It discusses how the public expenditure framework is designed to ensure both sound public finances and an outcome-focused approach to public expenditure.

The UK’s public spending framework is based on several key principles:

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consistency with a long-term, prudent and transparent regime for managing the public finances as a whole;

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the judgement of success by policy outcomes rather than resource inputs;

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strong incentives for departments and their partners in service delivery to plan over several years and plan together where appropriate so as to deliver better public services with greater cost effectiveness; and

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the proper costing and management of capital assets to provide the right incentives for public investment.

The Government sets policy to meet two firm fiscal rules:

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the Golden Rule states that over the economic cycle, the Government will borrow only to invest and not to fund current spending; and

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the Sustainable Investment Rule states that net public debt as a proportion of GDP will be held over the economic cycle at a stable and prudent level. Other things being equal, net debt will be maintained below 40 per cent of GDP over the economic cycle.

Achievement of the fiscal rules is assessed by reference to the national accounts, which are produced by the Office for National Statistics, acting as an independent agency. The Government sets its spending envelope to comply with these fiscal rules.

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Annually Managed Expenditure ( AME), which is expenditure which cannot reasonably be subject to firm, multi-year limits in the same way as DEL. AME includes social security benefits, local authority self-financed expenditure, debt interest, and payments to EU institutions.

More information about DEL and AME is set out below.

In Spending Reviews, firm DEL plans are set for departments for three years. To ensure consistency with the Government’s fiscal rules departments are set separate resource (current) and capital budgets. The resource budget contains a separate control total for “near cash” expenditure, that is expenditure such as pay and current grants which impacts directly on the measure of the golden rule.

To encourage departments to plan over the medium term departments may carry forward unspent DEL provision from one year into the next and, subject to the normal tests for tautness and realism of plans, may be drawn down in future years. This end-year flexibility also removes any incentive for departments to use up their provision as the year end approaches with less regard to value for money. For the full benefits of this flexibility and of three year plans to feed through into improved public service delivery, end-year flexibility and three year budgets should be cascaded from departments to executive agencies and other budget holders.

Three year budgets and end-year flexibility give those managing public services the stability to plan their operations on a sensible time scale. Further, the system means that departments cannot seek to bid up funds each year (before 1997, three year plans were set and reviewed in annual Public Expenditure Surveys). So the credibility of medium-term plans has been enhanced at both central and departmental level.

Departments have certainty over the budgetary allocation over the medium term and these multi-year DEL plans are strictly enforced. Departments are expected to prioritise competing pressures and fund these within their overall annual limits, as set in Spending Reviews. So the DEL system provides a strong incentive to control costs and maximise value for money.

There is a small centrally held DEL Reserve. Support from the Reserve is available only for genuinely unforeseeable contingencies which departments cannot be expected to manage within their DEL.

AME typically consists of programmes which are large, volatile and demand-led, and which therefore cannot reasonably be subject to firm multi-year limits. The biggest single element is social security spending. Other items include tax credits, Local Authority Self Financed Expenditure, Scottish Executive spending financed by non-domestic rates, and spending financed from the proceeds of the National Lottery.

AME is reviewed twice a year as part of the Budget and Pre-Budget Report process reflecting the close integration of the tax and benefit system, which was enhanced by the introduction of tax credits.

AME is not subject to the same three year expenditure limits as DEL, but is still part of the overall envelope for public expenditure. Affordability is taken into account when policy decisions affecting AME are made. The Government has committed itself not to take policy measures which are likely to have the effect of increasing social security or other elements of AME without taking steps to ensure that the effects of those decisions can be accommodated prudently within the Government’s fiscal rules.

Given an overall envelope for public spending, forecasts of AME affect the level of resources available for DEL spending. Cautious estimates and the AME margin are built in to these AME forecasts and reduce the risk of overspending on AME.

Together, DEL plus AME sum to Total Managed Expenditure (TME). TME is a measure drawn from national accounts. It represents the current and capital spending of the public sector. The public sector is made up of central government, local government and public corporations.

Resource and Capital Budgets are set in terms of accruals information. Accruals information measures resources as they are consumed rather than when the cash is paid. So for example the Resource Budget includes a charge for depreciation, a measure of the consumption or wearing out of capital assets.

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Non cash charges in budgets do not impact directly on the fiscal framework. That may be because the national accounts use a different way of measuring the same thing, for example in the case of the depreciation of departmental assets. Or it may be that the national accounts measure something different: for example, resource budgets include a cost of capital charge reflecting the opportunity cost of holding capital; the national accounts include debt interest.

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Within the Resource Budget DEL, departments have separate controls on:

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Near cash spending, the sub set of Resource Budgets which impacts directly on the Golden Rule; and

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The amount of their Resource Budget DEL that departments may spend on running themselves (e.g. paying most civil servants’ salaries) is limited by Administration Budgets, which are set in Spending Reviews. Administration Budgets are used to ensure that as much money as practicable is available for front line services and programmes. These budgets also help to drive efficiency improvements in departments’ own activities. Administration Budgets exclude the costs of frontline services delivered directly by departments.

The Budget preceding a Spending Review sets an overall envelope for public spending that is consistent with the fiscal rules for the period covered by the Spending Review. In the Spending Review, the Budget AME forecast for year one of the Spending Review period is updated, and AME forecasts are made for the later years of the Spending Review period.

The 1998 Comprehensive Spending Review ( CSR), which was published in July 1998, was a comprehensive review of departmental aims and objectives alongside a zero-based analysis of each spending programme to determine the best way of delivering the Government’s objectives. The 1998 CSR allocated substantial additional resources to the Government’s key priorities, particularly education and health, for the three year period from 1999-2000 to 2001-02.

Delivering better public services does not just depend on how much money the Government spends, but also on how well it spends it. Therefore the 1998 CSR introduced Public Service Agreements (PSAs). Each major government department was given its own PSA setting out clear targets for achievements in terms of public service improvements.

The 1998 CSR also introduced the DEL/ AME framework for the control of public spending, and made other framework changes. Building on the investment and reforms delivered by the 1998 CSR, successive spending reviews in 2000, 2002 and 2004 have:

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provided significant increase in resources for the Government’s priorities, in particular health and education, and cross-cutting themes such as raising productivity; extending opportunity; and building strong and secure communities;

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enabled the Government significantly to increase investment in public assets and address the legacy of under investment from past decades. Departmental Investment Strategies were introduced in SR2000. As a result there has been a steady increase in public sector net investment from less than ¾ of a per cent of GDP in 1997-98 to 2¼ per cent of GDP in 2005-06, providing better infrastructure across public services;

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introduced further refinements to the performance management framework. PSA targets have been reduced in number over successive spending reviews from around 300 to 110 to give greater focus to the Government’s highest priorities. The targets have become increasingly outcome-focused to deliver further improvements in key areas of public service delivery across Government. They have also been refined in line with the conclusions of the Devolving Decision Making Review to provide a framework which encourages greater devolution and local flexibility. Technical Notes were introduced in SR2000 explaining how performance against each PSA target will be measured; and

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not only allocated near cash spending to departments, but also – since SR2002 — set Resource DEL plans for non cash spending.

To identify what further investments and reforms are needed to equip the UK for the global challenges of the decade ahead, on 19 July 2005 the Chief Secretary to the Treasury announced that the Government intends to launch a second Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) reporting in 2007.

A decade on from the first CSR, the 2007 CSR will represent a long-term and fundamental review of government expenditure. It will cover departmental allocations for 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2010 11. Allocations for 2007-08 will be held to the agreed figures already announced by the 2004 Spending Review. To provide a rigorous analytical framework for these departmental allocations, the Government will be taking forward a programme of preparatory work over 2006 involving:

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an assessment of what the sustained increases in spending and reforms to public service delivery have achieved since the first CSR. The assessment will inform the setting of new objectives for the decade ahead;

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an examination of the key long-term trends and challenges that will shape the next decade – including demographic and socio-economic change, globalisation, climate and environmental change, global insecurity and technological change – together with an assessment of how public services will need to respond;

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to release the resources needed to address these challenges, and to continue to secure maximum value for money from public spending over the CSR period, a set of zero-based reviews of departments’ baseline expenditure to assess its effectiveness in delivering the Government’s long-term objectives; together with

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further development of the efficiency programme, building on the cross cutting areas identified in the Gershon Review, to embed and extend ongoing efficiency savings into departmental expenditure planning.

The 2007 CSR also offers the opportunity to continue to refine the PSA framework so that it drives effective delivery and the attainment of ambitious national standards.

Public Service Agreements (PSAs) were introduced in the 1998 CSR. They set out agreed targets detailing the outputs and outcomes departments are expected to deliver with the resources allocated to them. The new spending regime places a strong emphasis on outcome targets, for example in providing for better health and higher educational standards or service standards. The introduction in SR2004 of PSA ‘standards’ will ensure that high standards in priority areas are maintained.

The Government monitors progress against PSA targets, and departments report in detail twice a year in their annual Departmental Reports (published in spring) and in their autumn performance reports. These reports provide Parliament and the public with regular updates on departments’ performance against their targets.

Technical Notes explain how performance against each PSA target will be measured.

To make the most of both new investment and existing assets, there needs to be a coherent long term strategy against which investment decisions are taken. Departmental Investment Strategies (DIS) set out each department’s plans to deliver the scale and quality of capital stock needed to underpin its objectives. The DIS includes information about the department’s existing capital stock and future plans for that stock, as well as plans for new investment. It also sets out the systems that the department has in place to ensure that it delivers its capital programmes effectively.

This document was updated on 19 December 2005.

Near-cash resource expenditure that has a related cash implication, even though the timing of the cash payment may be slightly different. For example, expenditure on gas or electricity supply is incurred as the fuel is used, though the cash payment might be made in arrears on aquarterly basis. Other examples of near-cash expenditure are: pay, rental.Net cash requirement the upper limit agreed by Parliament on the cash which a department may draw from theConsolidated Fund to finance the expenditure within the ambit of its Request forResources. It is equal to the agreed amount of net resources and net capital less non-cashitems and working capital.Non-cash cost costs where there is no cash transaction but which are included in a body’s accounts (or taken into account in charging for a service) to establish the true cost of all the resourcesused.Non-departmental a body which has a role in the processes of government, but is not a government public body, NDPBdepartment or part of one. NDPBs accordingly operate at arm’s length from governmentMinisters.Notional cost of a cost which is taken into account in setting fees and charges to improve comparability with insuranceprivate sector service providers.The charge takes account of the fact that public bodies donot generally pay an insurance premium to a commercial insurer.the independent body responsible for collecting and publishing official statistics about theUK’s society and economy. (At the time of going to print legislation was progressing tochange this body to the Statistics Board).Office of Government an office of the Treasury, with a status similar to that of an agency, which aims to maximise Commerce, OGCthe government’s purchasing power for routine items and combine professional expertiseto bear on capital projects.Office of the the government department responsible for discharging the Paymaster General’s statutoryPaymaster General,responsibilities to hold accounts and make payments for government departments and OPGother public bodies.Orange bookthe informal title for Management of Risks: Principles and Concepts, which is published by theTreasury for the guidance of public sector bodies.Office for NationalStatistics, ONS60Managing Public Money

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GLOSSARYOverdraftan account with a negative balance.Parliament’s formal agreement to authorise an activity or expenditure.Prerogative powerspowers exercisable under the Royal Prerogative, ie powers which are unique to the Crown,as contrasted with common-law powers which may be available to the Crown on the samebasis as to natural persons.Primary legislationActs which have been passed by the Westminster Parliament and, where they haveappropriate powers, the Scottish Parliament and the Northern Ireland Assembly. Begin asBills until they have received Royal Assent.arrangements under which a public sector organisation contracts with a private sectorentity to construct a facility and provide associated services of a specified quality over asustained period. See annex 7.5.Proprietythe principle that patterns of resource consumption should respect Parliament’s intentions,conventions and control procedures, including any laid down by the PAC. See box 2.4.Public Accountssee Committee of Public Accounts.CommitteePublic corporationa trading body controlled by central government, local authority or other publiccorporation that has substantial day to day operating independence. See section 7.8.Public Dividend finance provided by government to public sector bodies as an equity stake; an alternative to Capital, PDCloan finance.Public Service sets out what the public can expect the government to deliver with its resources. EveryAgreement, PSAlarge government department has PSA(s) which specify deliverables as targets or aimsrelated to objectives.a structured arrangement between a public sector and a private sector organisation tosecure an outcome delivering good value for money for the public sector. It is classified tothe public or private sector according to which has more control.Rate of returnthe financial remuneration delivered by a particular project or enterprise, expressed as apercentage of the net assets employed.Regularitythe principle that resource consumption should accord with the relevant legislation, therelevant delegated authority and this document. See box 2.4.Request for the functional level into which departmental Estimates may be split. RfRs contain a number Resources, RfRof functions being carried out by the department in pursuit of one or more of thatdepartment’s objectives.Resource accountan accruals account produced in line with the Financial Reporting Manual (FReM).Resource accountingthe system under which budgets, Estimates and accounts are constructed in a similar wayto commercial audited accounts, so that both plans and records of expenditure allow in fullfor the goods and services which are to be, or have been, consumed – ie not just the cashexpended.Resource budgetthe means by which the government plans and controls the expenditure of resources tomeet its objectives.Restitutiona legal concept which allows money and property to be returned to its rightful owner. Ittypically operates where another person can be said to have been unjustly enriched byreceiving such monies.Return on capital the ratio of profit to capital employed of an accounting entity during an identified period.employed, ROCEVarious measures of profit and of capital employed may be used in calculating the ratio.Public Privatepartnership, PPPPrivate Finance Initiative, PFIParliamentaryauthority61Managing Public Money

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GLOSSARYRoyal charterthe document setting out the powers and constitution of a corporation established underprerogative power of the monarch acting on Privy Council advice.Second readingthe second formal time that a House of Parliament may debate a bill, although in practicethe first substantive debate on its content. If successful, it is deemed to denoteParliamentary approval of the principle of the proposed legislation.Secondary legislationlaws, including orders and regulations, which are made using powers in primary legislation.Normally used to set out technical and administrative provision in greater detail thanprimary legislation, they are subject to a less intense level of scrutiny in Parliament.European legislation is,however,often implemented in secondary legislation using powers inthe European Communities Act 1972.Service-level agreement between parties, setting out in detail the level of service to be performed.agreementWhere agreements are between central government bodies, they are not legally a contractbut have a similar function.Shareholder Executive a body created to improve the government’s performance as a shareholder in businesses.Spending reviewsets out the key improvements in public services that the public can expect over a givenperiod. It includes a thorough review of departmental aims and objectives to find the bestway of delivering the government’s objectives, and sets out the spending plans for the givenperiod.State aidstate support for a domestic body or company which could distort EU competition and sois not usually allowed. See annex 4.9.Statement of Excessa formal statement detailing departments’ overspends prepared by the Comptroller andAuditor General as a result of undertaking annual audits.Statement on Internal an annual statement that Accounting Officers are required to make as part of the accounts Control, SICon a range of risk and control issues.Subheadindividual elements of departmental expenditure identifiable in Estimates as single cells, forexample cell A1 being administration costs within a particular line of departmental spending.Supplyresources voted by Parliament in response to Estimates, for expenditure by governmentdepartments.Supply Estimatesa statement of the resources the government needs in the coming financial year, and forwhat purpose(s), by which Parliamentary authority is sought for the planned level ofexpenditure and income.Target rate of returnthe rate of return required of a project or enterprise over a given period, usually at least a year.Third sectorprivate sector bodies which do not act commercially,including charities,social and voluntaryorganisations and other not-for-profit collectives. See annex 7.7.Total Managed a Treasury budgeting term which covers all current and capital spending carried out by the Expenditure,TMEpublic sector (ie not just by central departments).Trading fundan organisation (either within a government department or forming one) which is largely orwholly financed from commercial revenue generated by its activities. Its Estimate shows itsnet impact, allowing its income from receipts to be devoted entirely to its business.Treasury Minutea formal administrative document drawn up by the Treasury, which may serve a wide varietyof purposes including seeking Parliamentary approval for the use of receipts asappropriations in aid, a remission of some or all of the principal of voted loans, andresponding on behalf of the government to reports by the Public Accounts Committee(PAC).62Managing Public Money

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GLOSSARY63Managing Public MoneyValue for moneythe process under which organisation’s procurement, projects and processes aresystematically evaluated and assessed to provide confidence about suitability, effectiveness,prudence,quality,value and avoidance of error and other waste,judged for the public sectoras a whole.Virementthe process through which funds are moved between subheads such that additionalexpenditure on one is met by savings on one or more others.Votethe process by which Parliament approves funds in response to supply Estimates.Voted expenditureprovision for expenditure that has been authorised by Parliament. Parliament ‘votes’authority for public expenditure through the Supply Estimates process. Most expenditureby central government departments is authorised in this way.Wider market activity activities undertaken by central government organisations outside their statutory duties,using spare capacity and aimed at generating a commercial profit. See annex 7.6.Windfallmonies received by a department which were not anticipated in the spending review.

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