Guernsey Health and Social Services in £2.5m overspend

Guernsey's Health and Social Services (HSSD) Department has been criticised for poor financial management.

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) verdict comes in a report analysing HSSD's £2.5m budget overspend, in 2012.

The PAC said financial control, forecasting and assessing financial risk were all "less than satisfactory".

Deputy Heidi Soulsby said there should be a finance specialist on the department's board "to give greater assistance in financial matters."

The PAC also criticised a series of controversial cost-cutting moves brought in by the department at the end of 2012.

They included the deferral of non-urgent hospital treatment and the closure of two wards.

The committee stated that there was no "detailed business case" to show the extent of the changes impact.

A full review of the department's recruitment and retention strategy is now under way.