The Local Government Finance Act 1982 established the Audit Commission for Local Authorities in England and Wales on 21 January 1983. We began work as a public corporation on 1 April 1983.
On 1 October 1990 we assumed responsibility for the external audit of the National Health Service and our name changed to the Audit Commission for Local Authorities and the National Health Service in England and Wales. A consolidating Act, the Audit Commission Act 1998, brought the earlier statutory provisions together into one document.
Other changes
The Local Government Act 1999 extended our powers to include inspection of best value authorities, and the Local Government Act 2003 inspection of registered social landlords. The same legislation also conferred on us express powers to undertake comprehensive performance assessment of local authorities. The Health and Social Care (Community Health and Standards) Act 2003 said a foundation trust may appoint an officer of the Audit Commission as its auditor with our agreement. This provision is now in the National Health Service Act 2006. In 2005 we took on the appointment of auditors to English National Health Service charities through a provision in the Charities Act 1993.
The Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004 extended our functions to cover fire and rescue authorities' compliance with the Fire and Rescue National Framework. Our remit in Wales transferred to the Auditor General for Wales by the Public Audit (Wales) Act 2004. The words 'and Wales' dropped from our name in 2008.
The Serious Crime Act 2007 gave the Commission an express statutory power to conduct data matching exercises by. The Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 transferred the Benefit Fraud Inspectorate to the Audit Commission, and gave us a new power to provide advice and assistance to other public bodies. The 2007 Act also conferred on us a power to report on the performance of English local authorities in support of its programme of comprehensive area assessment. The Housing and Regeneration Act 2008 replaced registered social landlords with registered providers of social housing, and conferred on the Commission power to inspect them at the request of the Tenant Services Authority.
In August 2010 the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) announced plans to put in place new arrangements for auditing England's local public bodies. Eventually our responsibilities for overseeing and commissioning local audit will stop, as will our other statutory functions, including those relating to studies into financial management and value for money. At this point the Audit Commission will be disbanded.