Watchdog that buried its bone in the wrong place
3 Nov 08
Do you wonder why the Audit Commission, which does the books for local authorities and the like, has £10m saved up, on deposit in a bond that matures next year?
Well stop fretting: it hasn’t got that £10 million any more. It put it into two Icelandic banks. No sniggering at the back.
According to the BBC website, commission chairman Michael O’Higgins said that with money in 11 institutions, you were likely to take at least one hit. OK, but Mike took two hits – and he’s paid to be clever with money.
It’s probably not about being clever: don’t forget Oxford University had £30 million in much the same place.
Next question: who audits the Audit Commission? After all, if the commission is that foolish, what about those it’s supposed to keep it on the straight and narrow? Whoever they are, perhaps someone ought to check the recycling skip outside their offices for stored cash.