Since coverage in the press, in the summer of 2008, of concerns about quality and standards in English higher education, there has been a continuing debate about the nature and extent of the issues and about who is responsible for assuring quality. This article charts the background to these discussions and highlights the characteristics of the English system based on autonomous institutions and self-regulation. It also identifies the role played by the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA), and its predecessor organisations, in shaping the debate and determining the systems and processes that are used to demonstrate the security of academic standards. (Contains 7 notes and 1 figure.)