Agenda item

9.1

The Committee considered a report of the Interim Director of Finance and Commercial Services, Tony Kirkham, that provided members of the Committee with a summary of the 2022/23 unaudited statement of accounts and explained the core statement and key notes to the accounts.

9.2

The committee were advised of the national problem with the External Auditors timings and the Interim Director of Finance and Commercial Services wanted to put on record his thanks to the team for the delivery of the accounts in the right deadlines.

9.3

The Finance Manager, Ruth Matherson encouraged members to look at the accounts online by September 2023.  This was the deadline, however Ernst and Young (External Auditors) would not start to look at these until 2024.

9.4

Members were outraged by the external auditor delay, especially when the Council had completed its work by the deadlines and was being held up by a government strategy.  It was advised that only 9% of the external auditing work had been done out of the 85% of councils that had completed their work.

9.5

Members asked if the council could recoup any fees due to the delays.  The Interim Director of Finance and Commercial Services advised that the concerns over costings had been raised with the national body, but once the external auditors had completed their work, only then could the Council report back on costings.

9.6

Members asked how the issues were being communicated to the public.  The Interim Director of Finance and Commercial Services advised that this was mentioned in the public reports and was being spoke about in public meetings.  The Council were currently lobbying government until this was resolved.  The accounts would be on the website, but without a conclusion from September.

9.7

RESOLVED: That the Audit and Standards Committee 1) notes the core statements and the key notes to the Unaudited Statement of Accounts for 2022/23 and 2) note the potential delay to the external audit of the 2022/23 Statement of Accounts.