Auditor calls Bank of England regulation bill 'unacceptable'

By Ferdinando Giugliano
Financial Times, London
Thursday, October 15, 2015

The head of Britain's spending watchdog has attacked "unacceptable" government plans to increase transparency at the Bank of England, saying they created a false impression of greater accountability.

Sir Amyas Morse, who leads the National Audit Office, was commenting to the Financial Times about a government bill that would for the first time oblige Threadneedle Street to open its doors to Britain's official auditors.

The BoE and Financial Services Bill was presented to Parliament on Thursday. It is intended to increase scrutiny of the BoE, which has gained substantial additional powers since the financial crisis. But it gives the central bank's board of directors, or court, a veto over what the National Audit Office may scrutinise as part of its value-for-money studies.

The move would be the first time that a public entity could restrict the scope of a NAO value-for-money study. Britain's official auditors are not allowed to question the merits of policy, but government departments cannot limit what the auditors scrutinise.

It also sets the scene for a heated dispute between the Treasury, the BoE, and the NAO over how much external scrutiny there should be of the central bank. ...

... For the remainder of the report:

http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/a28001cc-7328-11e5-a129-3fcc4f641d98.html