Performance audit and the importance of the public debate

The purpose of this article is to explore the impact of performance audit on public policy. Thearticle investigates performance audit reports and the debates they initiate in the public realm.The case of Norway is analysed using mixed methods including a questionnaire, mapping andcategorizing of reports, document studies and interviews. The results show that theNorwegian Supreme Audit Institution (SAI) is primarily preoccupied with managerial issues.It is nevertheless open to interpretation whether the preoccupation with managerial issuesprimarily implies an efficiency and effectiveness focus or an assessment of compliance tomanagerial standards. Most reports get moderate attention in the media and in theparliamentary control committee. Therefore the direct dialogue with the ministries becomesimportant for the performance audits’ influence. In the public debate the SAI, the ministriesand the members of parliament base their argumentation in different institutional logics.These logics can lead to different interpretations of the control system, laws and regulationsand hamper the State Audit Institution’s influence