Central Government Inspection of Local Services in Britain

O F THE many and varied administrative devices employed by the British central government in the exercise of direction, supervision, and control over the activities of local authorities, is the most significant.1 After more than one hundred years of successful employment its importance is firmly established. To the American reader the word inspection is likely to connote a process of central investigation, narrow in scope and dedicated largely to the discovery and correction of local violations and administrative deficiencies. Such a concept is inadequate and misleading. The inspectorates of the various ministries do, of course, observe and report back to their superiors in Whitehall on the manner and efficiency of local government authorities in discharging the duties and responsibilities entrusted to them by Parliament. But of far greater significance, they are permanent, highly professional advisory groups which make available to local authorities expert knowledge gained through years of observation and study. Often they speak for the central department and upon occasion act on its behalf. Invariably inspectors are specialists who know what to look for and where to find it. It is their peculiar talent to discover quickly the essence of a problem and to discern the difference between seri

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