Abstract
Accountability in the public sector is extremely complex. Some academics have argued that this has always been the case (Sinclair 1995). However, politicians have only begun to realise it more recently. The UK government has introduced various legislative agendas in the fire sector throughout the 21st century to improve the sector’s accountability. We draw upon government legislation, ministerial statements, parliamentary committee, audit, inspection and other publicly available reports to highlight the key issues that have been part of the accountability agenda in the Governance and Performance Management Regime and Financial Management Regime of English Fire and Rescue Services. Examining how this policy agenda has developed and been implemented reveals insights into the difficulties of improving accountability in practice. We argue that the Fire and Rescue Services’ accountability issues have become particularly difficult for a government fixated on a reform agenda based upon New Public Management principles that have repeatedly proven to be ineffective. We argue that accountability issues in the Fire and Rescue Services need to be addressed through new approaches that embrace the concept of Public Value and are more akin to New Public Governance thinking.