Local Government Auditing in England

Ferry, Laurence; Midgley, Henry; Murphie, Aileen

Abstract

English local government audit has gone through fundamental change in the last decade and this period of instability looks certain to continue. Since 2014, councils have been audited by private sector auditors appointed theoretically by the councils themselves (though an overwhelming majority of councils have delegated this responsibility). The scope of audit after 2014 reduced to focus mainly on top-down financial management, rather than value for money or inspection. After growing concerns about the scope and quality of audit however, in 2020, the Government commissioned Sir Tony Redmond to review local audit arrangements in England. The Redmond review identified several problems with the reformed structure and made recommendations for change. Currently, the sector is uncertain about what changes will be adopted to solve the issues discovered by Redmond.

Citation

Ferry, L., Midgley, H., & Murphie, A. (2022). Local Government Auditing in England. In L. Ferry, & P. Ruggiero (Eds.), Auditing Practices in Local Governments: An International Comparison (57-64). Emerald

• Online Publication Date: Jun 15, 2022
• Publication Date: 2022
• Deposit Date: May 23, 2022
• Publicly Available Date: Jun 15, 2022
• Publisher: Emerald
• Pages: 57-64
• Series Title: Emerald Studies in Public Service Accounting and Accountability
• Edition: First edition
• Book Title: Auditing Practices in Local Governments: An International Comparison
• Chapter Number: 6
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1621969
• Publisher URL: https://books.emeraldinsight.com/book/detail/auditing-practices-in-local-governments/?k=9781801170864
• Contract Date: Feb 28, 2022