Exchequer and Audit Departments Act 1866

This Act may be cited for all purposes as “The Exchequer and Audit Departments Act 1866.”

In this Act F1... “principal accountants” shall mean those who receive issues directly from the accounts of Her Majesty’s Exchequer at the F2Bank of England; F46...

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F4... The person appointed to be Comptroller and Auditor General shall have and perform all the powers and duties conferred or imposed on the Comptroller General of the Exchequer and the Commissioners for auditing the Public Accounts respectively by any enactments relative to those authorities respectively, as far as the same are not repealed or altered by this Act or any other Act of the present session of Parliament. F4...

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F49...; F47All public moneys payable to the Exchequer shall be paid F48into the Consolidated Fund; and accounts of all such payments shall be rendered to the Comptroller and Auditor General daily, in such form as the Treasury may prescribe: F50....

All moneys paid into the Bank of England F6. . . on account of the Exchequer shall be considered by the Governor and Company F7of the said Bank as forming one general fund in its books; and all orders directed by the Treasury F7to the Bank for issues out of credits to be granted by the Comptroller and Auditor General, as herein-after provided for the public service, shall be satisfied out of such general fund; and with a view to economize the public balances, the Treasury shall restrict the sums to be issued or transferred from time to time to the credit of accounts of principal accountants F7at the Bank, as herein-after provided, to such total sums as they may consider necessary for conducting the current payments for the public service intrusted to such principal accountants; and the said principal accountants may consider the sums so transferred to their accounts as constituting part of their general drawing balance, applicable to the payment of all the services for which they are accountable; but such sums shall be carried in the books of such accountants to the credit of the respective services for which the same may be issued, as specified in such orders: Provided always, that this enactment shall not be construed to empower the Treasury or any authority to direct the payment, by any such principal accountant, of expenditure not sanctioned by any Act whereby services are or may be charged on the Consolidated Fund, or by a vote of the House of Commons, or by an Act for the appropriation of the supplies annually granted by Parliament.

When any sum or sums of moneys shall have been granted to Her Majesty by a resolution of the House of Commons, or by an Act of Parliament, to defray expenses for any specified public services, it shall be lawful for Her Majesty from time to time, by her royal order under the Royal Sign Manual, countersigned by the Treasury, to authorize and require the Treasury to issue, out of the credits to be granted to them on the F10Exchequer account as herein-after provided, the sums which may be required from time to time to defray such expenses, not exceeding the amount of the sums so voted or granted.

It shall be lawful for the Treasury, whenever they shall consider it for the advantage of the public service, to direct that the accounts of any public officer or department, which by any Act or Acts are required to be kept under separate heads at the Bank of England F15. . ., shall be consolidated in such manner as they shall judge most convenient for the public service.

It shall be lawful for the Bank of England F16..., at the request of the Treasury F16... for the public convenience, to open and keep accounts of Government stock and annuities in the books of F17the Bank under the official description of any public officer for the time being, without naming him; and the dividends on such stock and annuities may from time to time be received, and the stock and annuities or any part thereof to the credit of such account may from time to time be transferred, by the officer for the time being holding such office, as if such stock and annuities stood in his own name; and upon the death, resignation, or removal of any such public officer the stock and annuities standing to the credit of such account, and all dividends thereon, including any dividends not theretofore received, shall become vested in his successor in office, and be receivable and transferable accordingly. And any such public officer in whose official description such Government stock and annuities may be standing may by letter of attorney authorize the Bank of England F16..., or all or any of F17its cashiers, to sell and transfer all or any part of the stock or annuities from time to time standing in the books of F17the Bank on such account, and to receive the dividends due and to become due thereon; but no stock or annuities shall be sold or transferred at F17the Bank under the authority of such general letter of attorney, except upon an order in writing F17given to the Bank by the Treasury.