LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND LOCAL GOVERNANCE: Review of the role of the Monitoring Officer

Decades of restructuring and retrenchment and austerity have engendered fragility across the public throughout the UK. Local government has been hit particularly hard, while retaining significant statutory responsibilities. A number of local authorities in England have issued section 114 ('bankrupcy') notices.

This PhD will interrogate the Office of the Chief Legal Adviser (Monitoring Officer), a key role in local government audit and accountability. Legal professionals should abide by certain standards of professionalism.

Generally, they relate to the role of lawyers, the meaning of the rule of law, and law's relationships with justice 1 2 and with politics3 .

In local governance, provisions on managing conflicts of interest ('client' as the local authority versus 'client' as the instructing officer within the authority4 ) are particularly relevant 5 . This research has academic and practical aims.

It contributes to a neglected domain of academic research, while also working in partnership with local government institutions operating under unprecedented pressure.