Auditing, the State and Democracy in a “New” Machine Age of Digitalization: The UK Supreme Audit Institution

ABSTRACT Many promises have been made about digitalization in the public sector, from its potential to revolutionize government to its emancipating properties as a new conduit for democracy. In this paper, the case of a leading Supreme Audit Institution (SAI), the UK National Audit Office, is examined. SAIs are essential to the ways in which government is managed and held to account. The paper examines the paradox that despite the promises made about digitalization, the digitalization of audit has progressed but has not been as revolutionary as its evangelists would expect. The paper breaks down the reasons for this by examining the regulatory space in which SAIs sit: Looking at their mandate, capacity, and reporting, and it shows that in all these, there are reasons why it is harder to digitalize than it looks from the outside. This has lessons for the broader public sector and beyond regarding change and technology.