Accounts and External Audit Update including Audit Fees 2019/20 (Verbal Update_
Verbal update by Director of Finance and Ernst & Young, External Audit.
Additional documents:
Decision:
Resolved
(1) That the verbal update be noted.
Minutes:
The Associate Partner - Ernst & Young gave a verbal update on the accounts and external audit work, advising the committee that due to the Covid-19 Pandemic the plan presented to the Committee in March 2020 had been revised.
The Associate Partner - Ernst & Young informed the Committee that the audit of the accounts had not been completed and new dates had been agreed.
The Director of Finance reported on the revised timeline for the accounts explaining that the Finance Team would prepare the accounts for the external auditor by the end August 2020. The audit completion date would now be 30 November 2020.
The Director of Finance explained that whilst the deadline for the preparation of the accounts was the end of August, the Finance Team would prepare them by the end of July to allow internal, including Member , review.
In response to Members’ questions to the delay and potential costs incurred around the revision of the timeline, the Director of Finance and the Associate Partner - Ernst & Young explained that the accounts were close to being completed on time but due to the significant amount of additional work in relation to Covid-19, it had been agreed to set a revised audit completion date.
The Associate Partner - Ernst & Young informed the Committee that additional abortive costs would be incurred in relation to the work and time Ernst & Young had spent working on the Accounts audit which had now been rescheduled. A full breakdown of these fees would be produced.
Committee members commented that it was unfortunate the way the matter had been handled and that additional costs had been incurred.
Resolved
(1) That the verbal update be noted.