Agenda item

To consider KPMG’s Governance Report and the audited Statement of Accounts for 2017/2018.

The Committee considered KPMG’s Governance Report and the audited Statement of Accounts for 2017-2018.

Mr Steve Thompson, Director of Resources, summarised the key aspects of the Statement of Accounts and advised that the accounts had been prepared in accordance with the relevant legislation and CIPFA standards.

The Committee was advised that the statutory deadline for approval of the final accounts was 31 July 2018. Mr Redmond also reminded the Committee that the Public Sector Audit Appointments Limited had appointed Deloitte as the External Auditor for the Council from 1 April 2018.

Mr Leviston, Manager Public Sector Audit, KPMG, advised that the accounts had been prepared carefully and praise was offered to Mr Thompson and the Finance team for their hard work and the overall quality of the accounts. He added that in terms of the content, including assets and valuations, there was little to query however there was an outstanding matter to resolve relating to pension pre-payments. The need for KPMG to then carry out further testing and assess any adjustments to the Statement of Accounts would mean that a final version of the ISA260 would not be available before the 31 July deadline.

The Committee considered both the Statement of Accounts 2017/2018 and External Auditor’s report as presented. Members were satisfied with the content and quality of the documents and had a number of questions on some of the technical aspects. In response to a query about amounts set aside to meet potential future liabilities, in particular a provision for Business Rate Appeals, the Committee was informed that a planned move away from five year valuations to a more frequent assessment would help to reduce potential liability in this area. A review of maintenance across the assets portfolio of the Council had noted little change to the position and a more detailed discussion related to rent reviews was deferred to Item 5. With regard to outstanding debts within the authority, it was reported that they were usually categorised according to the amount and nature of the debt. Following a question about the Carbon Reduction Commitment Energy Efficiency Scheme and whether the Council could face a financial penalty for failure to meet required standards, Mr Thompson reported that when carbon dioxide had been emitted when using energy, a liability and an expense would be incurred. He offered to provide a more detailed breakdown for the Committee at the next meeting

The Committee voiced their serious concern that the document had not been presented in its final form and with changes still required to be made to the External Auditor’s Report which may result in changes to the Statement of Accounts. Members voted unanimously to defer further consideration of the Item until such time that the version presented to the Committee could be considered final and would incorporate all the changes required. It was agreed that given the urgency to sign off the audited Statement of Accounts as soon as possible, that an extra meeting be arranged in order to achieve this.

The Committee agreed:

1.      That further consideration and final approval of the audited Statement of Accounts for 2017/2018 be deferred to an additional meeting of the Audit Committee to be arranged by the Clerk.

2.      That all changes to the audited Statement of Accounts and External Auditor’s report be made prior to their inclusion on the agenda for the additional meeting.

3.      Mr Steve Thompson, Director of Resources, to provide more detailed information related to carbon reduction targets and any penalties for non-compliance.