Accounts

Report: 9
Date: 28 September 2000
By: Treasurer

Summary

The report sets out the Panel’s responsibilities in respect of the Authority’s accounts and promises a report on the opening balance sheet to a future meeting.

A. Supporting information

1. The Panel’s terms of reference include: to review the Authority’s annual accounts and make recommendations as appropriate to the Authority for their approval.

2. The MPA’s first set of accounts will relate to the nine-month period 3 July 2000 - 31 March 2001. Thereafter the accounts will be on a normal twelve month basis closing at 31 March each year.

3. The Authority is required to approve its accounts prior to the external auditor publishing his opinion by 30 September, i.e. six months after the close of the financial year. The external auditor is expected to publish his opinion and management letter by 31 December.

4. To meet this timetable the Audit Panel will need to review the 2000/01 accounts during September 2001 and the future meeting dates will have to reflect this requirement.

5. Members will be aware that the MPA will be operating under different accounting arrangements to those, which applied to the Receiver and MPS prior to 3 July. In particular, we are accounting on a local authority accruals basis as opposed to the former cash accounting regime.

6. As part of this change, we have to construct an opening balance sheet for the MPA as at 3 July 2000. Work is continuing on this and I intend to bring the opening balance sheet to a future meeting of the Panel to enable a preview of the scrutiny of the 2000/01 accounts next year.

B. Recommendation

To note the report.

C. Financial implications

None.

D. Review arrangements

Information on the Authority’s accounts will be brought to future meetings of the Panel.

E. Background papers

The following is a statutory list of background papers (under the Local Government Act 1972 S.100 D) which disclose facts or matters on which the report is based and which have been relied on to a material extent in preparing this report. They are available on request either to the contact officer listed below or to the Clerk to the Police Authority at the address indicated on the agenda.

F. Contact details

The author of this report is Peter Martin.

For information contact:

MPA general: 020 7202 0202
Media enquiries: 020 7202 0217/18

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