Fallout continues from criticism of culture and spending at WICS

The Scottish Government’s deputy director of water policy, Jon Rathjen, is understood to have resigned, and an external review of the Water Industry Commission for Scotland’s (WICS) culture and ethos to have been ordered by the Scottish Government, as fallout from scrutiny on governance and financial management issues at the regulator continues.

These latest developments follow recent revelations from a newspaper Freedom of Information request that showed further examples of meals with alcohol being claimed on expenses and that the regulator sent multiple senior leaders on expensive training courses that involved time overseas in the Americas – with both activities involving WICS’ current interim chief executive David Satti before he took on the top job.

These developments came of the heels of an intervention by chief operating officer Michelle Ashford who in correspondence with the Scottish Government Public Audit Committee (PAC) – which is scrutinising the issues at the regulator – called the working environment at WICS last year “toxic” and argued: “A change in culture is required and this cannot be done through revising policies and procedures alone.”

The Scottish Government already planned to review WICS’ governance framework, but is understood now to have extended this to include culture and ethos.

Ministers have increasingly been drawn in as the revelations and investigations have continued, with The Times reporting cabinet secretary for net zero and energy, Màiri McAllan, ordered the review. Meanwhile, Rathjen, who leads on water at WICS’ sponsor department in the Scottish Government, is understood to have resigned.

The problems at WICS first emerged from the Auditor General for Scotland’s report on the regulator’s annual report and accounts for 2022-23, which heavily criticised governance and financial management issues.

• Gillian Martin will take on responsibility for the net zero and energy brief as acting cabinet secretary when Màiri McAllan goes on maternity leave from 1 July. Martin will step up from her current post of minister for climate action. Alasdair Allan will rejoin the government as acting minister for climate action as cover for Martin.