The Auditor General for Wales is totally independent of the National Assembly for Wales and the Welsh Assembly Government. His statutory powers and responsibilities include:   

• Auditing the accounts of the Welsh Assembly Government and its sponsored and related public bodies, including NHS bodies in Wales;
• Reporting to the National Assembly for Wales on the economy, efficiency and effectiveness with which the Welsh Assembly Government and its sponsored and related public bodies have used, and may improve the use of, their resources in discharging their functions;
• Appointing auditors to local government bodies in Wales;
• Conducting and promoting value for money studies in the local government sector and inspecting for compliance with best value requirements under the Wales Programme for Improvement;
• Overseeing and authorising payments from the Welsh Consolidated Fund and ensuring that proposed payments from the Fund are in accordance with legislation and budget authority.

The creation of the Wales Audit Office in 2005 has brought opportunities for synergy in the audit and inspection of public services in Wales. It has especially increased the scope for better sharing of information and good practice, particularly across sectors. Similarly, material from the audit and inspection of local bodies can be used to illustrate more fully the effects of national policies on the ground.

This ability of the Wales Audit Office to have oversight of the full national and local pictures is a powerful tool that it can use for the benefit of those responsible for policy formulation, delivery and scrutiny, as well as those paying for and receiving services.

The comprehensive view that the Wales Audit Office provides helps to ensure that audit and inspection effort is closely targeted to where it is needed most.

By having a more complete view of risks to value for money and their operational context, it is possible to assess risks more accurately.