Sue Winspear, Cayman’s first female auditor general, will be leaving office later this year after eight years of service to the people and government of the Cayman Islands.
Governor Jane Owen announced Winspear’s departure from office in a statement on Friday afternoon.
Winspear, who has been battling cancer for over a year now, joined the Auditor General’s Office in 2016 and took over from then acting Auditor General Garnet Harrison.
Winspear spoke briefly with the Cayman Compass on Friday on her decision to resign, simply saying, “it’s been a pleasure and a privilege to serve as auditor general.”
Owen, in her statement, said Winspear has indicated her intention to return to England and “to transition leadership at a time that is most beneficial to her team”.
Winspear’s exact departure date will be confirmed in the autumn, the governor said.
The recruitment process to fill the role of auditor general will begin soon, Owen added.
Strong legacy
The governor expressed her gratitude and admiration for Winspear’s contribution to Cayman, saying, “she has been a fierce advocate on behalf of our people, demanding good value for money in the ways public bodies procure goods and services, and insisting on strong accountability in their policy mandates”.
Winspear has been quite outspoken over the years to ensure the community gets value for the money spent by government.
She has also been circumspect in her reports and her function when she appears before Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee.
PAC chairman and Opposition Leader Roy McTaggart, in a brief comment via text on Winspear’s resignation, said he was “saddened” to learn of her decision to return to the UK as she continues to battle cancer.
“I pray that her treatment will be successful. On behalf of the Opposition and Public Accounts Committee, I thank Mrs. Winspear for her 8 years of service to the Government and people of the Cayman Islands. During her tenure the quality and timeliness of financial reporting by government entities has improved significantly,” he said.
He said in his capacity as chair of the Public Accounts Committee, he has enjoyed working with Winspear over the past three years and “I wish her well as she prepares to leave us and return to the UK”.
Owen pointed out that during Winspear’s tenure, the Office of the Auditor General has gone from strength to strength.
“Sue has earned the respect and confidence of all her stakeholders, including the Public Accounts Committee, our diverse range of ministries and public bodies, our local accounting profession, and fellow audit bodies regionally and internationally,” Owen said.
She added that during Winspear’s tenure, financial management and reporting by the Cayman Islands’ public sector has continuously improved, “thanks to strong effort and collaboration by the Auditor General’s office and senior civil and public servants including our Chief Financial Officers”.
The most recent 2023 financial audit cycle, she said, saw 39 out of 46 public sector entity audits completed by the 30 April statutory deadline, all with clean audit opinions.
“This marks our best ever performance in the Cayman Islands and amongst the best in the world. In addition, there have been many improvements to public services arising from legislative changes made in response to audit recommendations,” Owen added.
These, she said, include the introduction of the Procurement Act and Regulations, “which have improved value from public spending by markedly reducing poor procurement practices such as contract awards being made without competition”.
The Standards in Public Life Act was also introduced in 2017 after repeated audit recommendations from Winspear.
Additionally, Owen said, the introduction of the Public Authorities Act has improved many aspects of governance in statutory authorities and government companies, as recommended by the Office of the Auditor General.
Winspear’s recommendations through audits and special investigations have also led to the government issuing new guidance to further strengthen the way that it operates, Owen said.
One example, she said, was the issuing of new guidance for public servants in December 2022 to prevent the signing of new contracts or the development of new policies after an election has been called.
“This is a major step in improving accountability and transparency and will be important in the run up to our next election in 2025,” Owen added.
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