Agenda item

The report was introduced by Tom Greensill of Mazars, the Authority’s External Auditors, who thanked the Head of Finance and her team for the work and assistance during the Audit process.  James Sutton of Mazars was also present.

It was explained that there was a delay in the final opinion due to extra work around Value for Money (VFM) and fixed assets, the pandemic and general delays to the audit, the level of scrutiny required and resources. However the External Auditor expects to give an unqualified audit opinion on the Authority’s 2020/21 financial statements and will also report that the Annual Governance Statement for 2020/21 complies with guidance and anticipates issuing an unqualified VFM conclusion.

It was noted that the increase in fees was due to the increased work required for VFM, as standards have changed, and there was also an increased level of scrutiny required by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC).

RESOLVED:

1.    To note the External Auditor’s report as set out in Appendix 1 of the report.