Appendix I Origin and Development of the Audit of the Accounts of the State

An historical account however brief of the audit of the public accounts of New South Wales must, in the interests of completeness, concern itself with the form of the constitutional government of the day. It must also pay regard to the background of contemporary affairs over the period of time covered by the narrative, a period which in this case saw many changes and developments associated with the public finances. In addition, some description of what constituted the “public accounts”, particularly those of the earlier years, is essential as a natural prelude to discussing the question of their audit.