Abstract

This paper assesses the compliance of Republic of Ireland local government with legislation concerning the publication of performance information and compares this compliance with that of local government in the United Kingdom. Having given a brief overview of the rationale behind performance measurement in local government, the paper traces the key developments in the introduction of such a practice in both countries before assessing the current situation by using a document content analysis. It then asks the question whether the current practices of the Republic of Ireland are better than those of the United Kingdom or are catching up. It concludes with a short discussion on issues of non-compliance.