Page 3 - Audit Practice News Today

Members of the Conservative party claim the borough council’s net debt stands at £83 million, which has appeared in Facebook adverts and leaflets for UllaKarin Clark, their candidate for Emmbrook. The material states: “The independent auditor [Ernst & Young] says our net debt is £83 million against £1.3 billion in assets. Do you believe them or the Liberal Democrats trying to win your vote?” Ernst & Young [EY] are the council’s officially appointed auditors. The Liberal Demo...

City of London Corporation appoints new top team to lead transformational change What is city talk? Following its decision in December 2020 to endorse a new Operating Model, the City of London Corporation’s governing Court of Common Council today welcomed the appointment of eight new senior officers and formally confirmed the appointment of the first woman as Chamberlain, the Corporation’s Chief Financial Officer, since the post was created in 1237. Chair of the Establi...

The National Audit Office has demanded "clear leadership from government" in ending delays to council audits after confirming that less than half of council financial audits for 2019-20 were completed on time. Fifty-five percent of audit opinions were not issued by the 30 November 2020 deadline , despite the deadline being extended four months due to the pandemic by the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government, an NAO report out today reveals, describing the delays as “concerning�...

Fewer than half of local audits done by deadline, watchdog finds Fewer than half of local public bodies’ 2019-20 audits were completed by last November, despite a deadline already pushed back due to COVID, says a spending watchdog. In a report published today, the National Audit Office (NAO) highlighted a decrease in auditors delivering opinions in time for publication deadlines, reducing from more than half (57%) in 2018-19 to 45% in 2019-20. The 2018-19 figure also represented a sharp decr...

Whitehall claims about the key Redmond Review recommendation do not cut the mustard, writes the assistant director of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance & Accountancy. “I help to support the establishments I have mentioned--they cost enough; and those who are badly off must go there” – Ebenezer Scrooge I think it’s safe to say that the final announcements to come out of the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government for 2020 were a bit of a mixed bag. Despite the heroic ...

  · The Groups trading performance showed a 63% increase in revenue for the first six months against the previous trading period at £5,790k (2019: £3.548k) and EBITDA for the period was 75% ahead at £324k (2019: £252k).   · The Company performed well during the period, and highlights include the news that DCD Rights distributed drama, The Secrets She Keeps, was scheduled in primetime on BBC One in the UK, sustaining a top ten ranking on the BBC iPla...

Government gives green light to Redmond Review recommendations 22 December 2020: The government has responded positively to Sir Tony Redmond’s review into the effectiveness of external audit and transparency of financial reporting in local authorities, with some of the recommended reforms starting in 2021. On 17 December 2020, the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) published its response to Sir Tony Redmond’s independent review of loca...