Causes, consequences and possible resolution of the local authority audit crisis in England

Abstract

IMPACT Audit as adjudication in England has narrowed and become under-resourced, with consequent delays in the delivery of audit opinions. Local authorities, subjected to resource withdrawals from central government, have sought to navigate control processes to generate new, sometimes risky, forms of income. The integrated nature of public audit in the devolved nations has meant that they have avoided these calamities. Stakeholders in England will need to be vigilant to help ensure that local audit does not continue to be subsumed within the interests of corporate auditing.