Scrapping of audit watchdog for English councils ‘led to soaring costs and chaos’

High critical report finds that instead of promised annual saving of 100m, fees have rocketed amid financial crisis

David Cameron's bonfire of the quangos" decision to abolish England's council spending watchdog has left a broken system that is costing taxpayers more money than it was promised to save.

In a highly critical report, academics at the University of Sheffield said the coalition government of the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats had promised savings of 100m a year by abolishing the Audit Commission.