UK Government Names Boss for New Local Authority Audit Watchdog

The UK government announced Tuesday the boss of a new watchdog being set up in response to widespread issues with local government funding and auditing.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government named Bill Butler as its choice for a five-year term as chair of the Local Audit Office, due to be set up in the fall of this year. Butler is currently chair of Public Sector Audit Appointments Ltd, which hires local authority auditors under the existing setup.

The new office will be responsible for hiring and overseeing council auditors. Few local authorities have been able to ...