Land sale ‘let down’ by weak governance, says Wales Audit Office

The report dated July 15 concludes: “Due to flaws in the way RIFW was established, in the selection of assets and also in the sale process itself, neither RIFW nor the Welsh Government are able to demonstrate that value for money was achieved from the portfolio sale transaction.”

Auditor General for Wales, Huw Vaughan Thomas said: “I am deeply concerned that the Welsh Government cannot provide public assurance that RIFW achieved value for money from the sale of its land and property portfolio. If some of the sites had gone to market at a later date, they could have achieved significantly higher prices and thereby generated greater funds for regeneration investment across Wales”

The Welsh Government identified risks in relation to match-funding and making investments, but the focus on securing EU funding meant that the risk of failing to maximise potential returns from asset sales was not handled effectively, finds the report.

Download the report