Issue - meetings
Audit Commission Governance Statement (to follow)
Meeting: 28/09/2009 - Audit Board (this committee has been combined with the Audit, Standards & Governance Committee and no longer meets) (Item 22)
22 Audit Commission Annual Governance Report - Draft 
PDF 264 KB
Minutes:
A copy of the Annual Governance Report 2008/2009 - Draft was considered. The Chairman welcomed Ms. L. Cave, District Auditor and Ms. J. Hill, Audit Commission to the meeting. Ms. L. Cave presented the report and thanked Members for their co-operation with regards to the meeting time and extended an apology to Members on the late receipt of the report and acknowledged that Members would not have had sufficient time to fully read the report.
It was noted that a qualified audit opinion had been issued in relation to the Authority’s accounts in respect of the capital expenditure relating to the Spatial project and the evidence available to support the capital nature of this expenditure being limited because the supporting papers relating to those amounts were not available at the time of the audit. Members were formally asked to amend the accounts and note that ‘this error is greater than the materiality level and is therefore a material misstatement in the financial statements’.
The Head of Financial Services responded to questions from Members and informed Members that external advice was being sought on a capitalisation directive. Management had declined to adjust the errors in the financial statements for the reasons identified and those reasons would be included in the letter of representation to be signed by the Section 151 Officer and returned to the Audit Commission by close of play Wednesday 30th September 2009.
The Head of Financial Services confirmed that the Executive Director (Services) had delegated powers to sign the relevant Audit Commission documents in absence of the Joint Chief Executive.
The Chairman requested that Ms. L. Cave, District Auditor, Audit Commission provide detailed information to the Head of Financial Services on the current estimate for the additional Audit Commission charge.
RESOLVED:
(a) that having considered the matters raised in the report (pages 4 to 13), the financial statements be approved subject to resolutions (b) and (c) below;;
(b) that the adjustments to the financial statements as set out in Appendix 2 of the report be noted;
(c) that the errors in the financial statements identified, which management had declined to amend be noted and that the reasons for not amending the errors as set out in Appendix 3 of the report be included in the letter of representation referred to in the preamble above;
(d) that the signed Statement of Accounts be sent to the Audit Commission on 30th September 2009 with the delegated officer to sign on behalf of the Joint Chief Executive who was currently on leave;
(e) that the qualified value for money (VFM) conclusion be noted;
(f) that the letter of representation on behalf of the Council be approved; and
(g) that the response to the proposed action plan be agreed.