Call for views issued in independent review of local authority audit in England
Sir Tony Redmond has issued a call for views as part of his independent review of the quality and effectiveness of the audit and financial reporting of local authorities in England.
The former President of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance is to examine the effectiveness of local authority financial reporting and the audit regime.
The review will also examine whether the financial information provided in local authority accounts facilitates scrutiny by local taxpayers and by local press.
Sir Tony has asked practitioners who work in the local government sector, the audit community, representative bodies and other relevant or interested parties, to submit their response to an open set of questions.
The call for evidence, which will close on 22 November, invites views, information and evidence on issues including:
- definitions of audit and its users
- the expectation gap
- audit and wider assurance
- the governance framework
- audit product and quality
- auditor reporting
- how local authorities respond to audit findings
- the financial reporting framework
Sir Tony said: “This call for evidence is a key part of my review of the effectiveness of audit in local authorities and the transparency of their financial reporting.
“I will look to test the assurance processes in place with regard to value for money arrangements together with the financial resilience in local councils.”
Sir Tony is a former local authority Treasurer and Chief Executive. He has also worked as a Local Government Boundary Commissioner and held the post of Local Government Ombudsman.
He is expected to submit his report with initial recommendations to the Secretary of State in January, with a final report published in March 2020.
Local Government Minister Luke Hall said: “It’s important that local authorities are held financially accountable to reinforce public confidence and deliver value for money for taxpayers.
“That’s why the independent review being carried out by Sir Tony Redmond, to ensure a robust local audit system, is so vital. I encourage all interested parties to submit evidence to help inform the review’s recommendations.”
The review of financial reporting and external audit follows the full implementation of the Local Audit and Accountability Act of 2014, which set down the responsibilities for local authority audits and how they are conducted.
The 2014 Act gave effect to manifesto commitments to abolish the Audit Commission and its centralised performance and inspection regimes and put in place a new localised audit regime, intended to refocus local accountability on improved transparency.
