ABSTRACT

In the UK, public audit and accountability have been the subject of various reviews.1 In 1992 the Cadbury Committee reviewed corporate governance. In 1995 the Nolan Committee examined standards of conduct in public life and identified instances of corruption and misbehaviour in local government. In 1997 the third Nolan Report2 concluded that many people were no longer clear about the standards of conduct expected of people in public services. The old culture of the public sector, seen as a guarantor of probity, was being seriously undermined by the entrepreneurial values of management.3