The budget agreement for 2012 stipulated that the regions should present a proposal in August 2011 for future quarterly reporting to the Government on the status of the hospital construction projects.
The text reads as follows (translated):
"For each project, audited quarterly reports will be prepared for the regional councils, which will also provide the basis for monitoring by the Ministry of the Interior and Health. The regions will prepare a proposal for standardised regional reporting by the end of August 2011 which covers progress, etc. in the construction projects. This will provide a basis for discussions with the Ministry of the Interior and Health for the purpose of deciding a final reporting form".
In autumn 2011 the Ministry of Health established an inspection unit responsible for the payment of funds from Kvalitetsfonden and monitoring the way the regions spend the funding on the hospital construction projects. Funds from Kvalitetsfonden represent a specific government grant and are therefore covered by the regulations for grant administration in the public sector, cf. the 2011 budget guideline and Danish Agency for Governmental Management's Guideline on effective grant administration ('Vejledning om effektiv tilskudsforvaltning') of June 2011.
Once payments from Kvalitetsfonden to the regions' construction projects commence, the regions must begin to submit the quarterly reports to the Ministry of Health. A format for the quarterly reports has been agreed on.
Investigation by the Auditor Genral (Rigsrevisionen) of the Kvalitetsfonden construction projects
The Auditor General is monitoring the regions hospital construction projects that are receiving funding from Kvalitetsfonden. The Auditor General is evaluating the preparations for the hospital construction projects by the Ministry of Health and regions in an investigation. The focus of the investigation is on whether:
- The Ministry of Health has carried out the funding approval process and organised inspection of the hospital construction projects in a satisfactory manner.
- The regions have planned the hospital construction projects and organised management of the processes in a satisfactory manner.
Danish act on public building works (Lov om offentligt byggeri)
Hospital construction projects receiving funding from Kvalitetsfonden are currently covered by the act on public building works (formerly 'statsbyggeloven') to the extent that a provision exists in a specific statutory order stipulating that this is the case for general construction, where the Government finances at least 50 per cent of the construction costs through loans or grants. Such a provision can currently be found in the following statutory orders:
- Statutory Order on key metrics for Government building projects (Bekendtgørelse om nøgletal for statsbyggerier).
- Statutory order on requirements for the use of information and communication technology in construction (Bekendtgørelse om krav til anvendelse af Informations- og Kommunikationsteknologi i byggeri).
- Statutory Order on quality assurance for construction work (Bekendtgørelse om kvalitetssikring af byggearbejder).
- Statutory Order on construction within public-private partnerships (Bekendtgørelse om byggerier udført i offentlig-private partnerskaber (OPP)).
During the 2010/11 parliamentary session the Act on public building works was expanded to also cover general construction activities in the regions and municipalities.
Given this is a framework act, specific implementation will depend on which statutory orders contain provisions stipulating that regions and municipalities are covered. No revised statutory orders have yet been issued with such a provision. This is expected to happen in the first half of 2012.