So what did the Audit Commission ever do for us? Not much, judging from the chorus yelling ‘good riddance’ as soon as Communities Secretary Eric Pickles announced the watchdog’s death.
Ok, it’s true that the commission has done much to improve local government performance, dragging many failing authorities up to four-star rating. And yes, its auditing of services has raised standards across the public sector, improved value for money and helped stamp out corruption.
But what’s all that compared with profligate spending on bagels and pot plants – not to mention those corporate jollies at the races?
Reaction to news of the watchdog’s demise has descended rapidly to the level of Pythonesque farce.
In its 27-year history, the commission has, without question, had its low points as well as its highs. Its handling of the Icelandic financial crisis – and own goals on salaries and expenses – are recent cases in point.
And its inspections have, over the years, become over-rigid and burdensome (a point implicitly recognised by the now-defunct Comprehensive Area Assessment).
But none of this excuses the glib, look-on-the-bright-side, response from councils celebrating an end to the ‘tick-box’ regime.
As Chris Bilsland, chair of CIPFA’s local government panel, puts it on the PF video blog (opinion.publicfinance.co.uk), councils might not like the commission’s ‘tough love’ approach – but they need to ask, who is going to produce that kind of challenge now?
Pickles is looking to private auditing firms and ‘an army of armchair auditors’ (see Are you sitting comfortably?) to hold public bodies to account. In the process he hopes to save the DCLG £50m a year. How realistic is this?
Private firms already carry out around 30% of the commission’s audits, and are no doubt eager to do more. But a narrow focus on financial audit does not tell the public much about the effectiveness of spending.
As for armchair auditing, where is the evidence that people want to spend their leisure hours poring over public accounts – or are equipped to make rounded judgements about them?
The more likely scenario is that the ‘Big Four’ firms will cherry-pick refugees from the Audit Commission – and local authorities will pay to hire them back at a cost.
Meanwhile, the National Audit Office might pick up some of the Audit Commission’s more strategic functions. But it too will need to be adequately resourced (see What happens when the watchdog stops watching?).
It all seems a high human and financial price to pay for reinventing the wheel.
