Department for Economy Forensic Accounting

Discover how MCC partnered with the Department for the Economy (DfE) to deliver a comprehensive forensic accounting review of BT’s broadband rollout in Northern Ireland. By assembling a multidisciplinary team of accountants and engineers, MCC provided detailed insights and actionable recommendations to address contractual inconsistencies and ensure the infrastructure met required standards. This case study demonstrates our expertise in blending technical and financial analysis to support critical government initiatives.

What the Client Needed?

The Department for the Economy (DfE) sought MCC’s expertise to address issues related to BT’s broadband rollout in Northern Ireland. Specifically, their needs included identification of reporting problems, investigating discrepancies in reported information, grant monitoring and oversight, technical validation, and infrastructure Inspection.

How we Helped them?

Forensic Accounting

MCC delivered comprehensive and multidisciplinary approach to meet DfE’s requirements. Our contributions included:

  1. Sectoral Research and Analysis:
    • Conducted in-depth research on individual sectors contributing to Abu Dhabi’s GDP.
    • Analyzed historical performance, identified key growth variables, and evaluated market conditions for each sector.
  2. Development of Advanced Forecasting Models:
    • Built sector-specific econometric models and statistical frameworks to forecast GDP trends.
    • Integrated scenario drivers and "what-if" simulations to assess potential impacts of economic changes.
  3. Accurate GDP Forecasting:
    • Utilized advanced forecasting techniques, including extrapolation and time series decomposition, to project GDP trends over the specified time horizon.
    • Accounted for various assumptions and uncertainties to ensure reliable predictions.
  4. Continuous Monitoring and Updates:
    • Regularly updated forecasts with new economic data and information to maintain their accuracy and relevance.
    • Monitored sector-specific indicators and adjusted models to reflect changing market dynamics.
  5. Actionable Insights for Decision-Making:
    • Delivered comprehensive reports and insights to empower policymakers, investors, and businesses in their strategic planning and resource allocation.
    • Enabled stakeholders to identify opportunities for development and investment, supporting the sustainable growth of Abu Dhabi’s economy.

I was delighted that MCC's work was completed on time, and within budget, helping us deliver important changes and improvements, to the benefit of our stakeholders. ​ MCC's report is published on the CCC website.

- Bea Natzler
Team Leader at Climate Change Committee, UK

I am delighted to recommend MCC Economics. Specifically, I worked closely with PJ, who helped us with our Nuclear and CCUS projects. PJ helped us develop new policies and answer questions from our stakeholders. ​​His support helped us deliver important changes and improvements, to the benefit of our stakeholders.

- Gordon Hutcheson
Head of Nuclear Policy at Ofgem, UK

MCC Economics has helped us better understand the most important issues for our stakeholders, including: charges, shareholder returns, debt payments and inflation impacts.

- Leila N. Nasr
Section Head at Department of Energy, Abu Dhabi

I am delighted to recommend PJ and his team at MCC Economics. We've been working together on National Policy Statements to help meet net zero targets for 2030 and 2050. We initially appointed MCC Economics to support us on offshore wind consultation analysis and have recently reappointed MCC Economics to undertake a larger consultation analysis role across all sectors, including hydrogen, CCUS and networks. I can confirm that they have shown excellent spreadsheet skills, alongside very good project management, planning and analysis skills, helping us deliver important changes, and continuous improvements, to the benefit of our stakeholders.

- Amy McHugh
Head of Environment in the Energy Infrastructure Planning Policy, UK

I am delighted to recommend PJ and his team from MCC Economics. They helped us with our price controls for Heathrow airport and for NATS (En Route) plc (the air traffic services provider). Specifically, the MCC team helped us deliver important changes and improvements to our financial models and supporting policy documents, to the benefit of our stakeholders.

- Dan Rock
Head of Corporate Finance at CAA, UK

I am delighted to confirm that I worked with PJ on a retail project in 2015. The project helped stakeholders understand electricity costs and charges. Specifically, the project helped us explain to stakeholders, internally and externally, why electricity charges differed across the regions (GB, NI & Ireland). PJ was a key member on the project team, which helped deliver changes and improvements in the understanding of energy retail.

- Kevin Shiels
Director at Utility Regulator, Northern Ireland