3Q6 THE BRITISH APPROACH TO POLITICS

co-operation with the Treasurer, a paid official, has then to ensure
that no money is spent except for the purposes which the Council
has sanctioned, and to consider the raising of revenue. In March
of every year, the chairman of the Finance Committee makes a
speech to the Council, comparable to the Budget Speech of the
Chancellor of the Exchequer. He describes the Council's policy,
the expense which it involves, and the receipts from sources
other than rates. From this follows the amount which the Council,
if it is a precepting authority* will have to require from the
rating authority. The latter must add these precepts on to its
own needs, and decide what rate in the £ to levy^Economy, in
local as in national Government, is in part the careful comparison
of the benefits conferred by public Service, with those which the
individual ratepayers would obtain if the money were left in their
pockets, and this is a question which divides parties. But economy
is also the determination to see that a given standard of service
is provided at the least cost. The Council will be helped in this
part of its work if it obtains, from its officials, statistics of the
cost of street lighting per mile, hospital treatment per patient,
and the like. These <^an be compared with those of other authorities
providing services of a similar quality; but they need to be supple-
mented by figures showing the advantages of the services to the
ratepayers—e.g., the numbers using the baths and public libraries,
the death and infant mortality rates, and the prevalence of serious

The annual Audit helps to secure economy, but its chief purpose
is to see that money is not devoted to projects which'are ultra
vires, beyond the legal powers of a local authority, or spent with
such extravagance that the needs of the legal services are obviously
exceeded. The country is divided into Audit Districts, for each
of which an Auditor is appointed and paid by the Ministry of
Health. The Clerks of County, District, and Parish Councils,
must present to him a statement of their accounts, up to the
previous 3ist of March. It must show all the money received and
spent in the year, the separate figures for the different services,