Issue - meetings

Meeting: 24/01/2022 - Council (Item 67)

67 Recommendation from Governance and Audit Committee - Opting-In to Public Sector Audit Appointments Ltd pdf icon PDF 158 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Councillor John McNeill, as Chairman of the Governance and Audit Committee, was pleased to present the report to Council which recommended that West Lindsey District Council accept the invitation of opting-in to the Public Sector Audit Appointments (PSAA) sector led option for the appointment of our external auditors for the period 2023/2024 to 2027/2028.

 

This report had been was considered by the Governance and Audit Committee at its meeting on 11 January 2022 and stood recommended to Council.

 

The report detailed the advantages and disadvantages relating to the decision.

 

Whilst it was ultimately for the Council to determine how it appoints its external auditor, the Governance and Audit Committee had been of the view that accepting the invitation to opt into the PSSA scheme was the most appropriate route to ensure a quality auditor and to achieve value for money.

 

The Government incorporated the PSAA in the 2018/2019 financial year to be the appointing person for Local Government and Police body’s external auditors.  As such it would be the PSAA who would appoint the auditors, set the fees and monitor quality and compliance, if the recommendation was accepted.

 

The current 5-year contract arranged through the PSAA with  external auditors, Mazars, would end following the conclusion of the audit of the statement of accounts for 2022/2023.  Overall, the Council could be assured that it had received a good level of service under the current contract.

 

In concluding his introduction, The Chairman of the Governance Audit Committee brought to Members’ attention the changes made, nationally, in regulations and how the concomitant effect on resources and costs had significantly impacted the delivery of local authority audits within the statutory timelines, with costs increasing by around 25%.  However, the Government had recently announced several measures to improve the situation, in addition to providing additional funding to support the increased costs to local authorities of these regulatory changes.

 

Having been moved and duly seconded, on being put to the vote it was: -

 

RESOLVED that the Recommendation from the Governance and Audit Committee be accepted and as such the invitation of opting in to the PSAA sector led option for the appointment of external auditors for the period 2023/24 to 2027/28 be accepted.


Meeting: 11/01/2022 - Governance and Audit Committee (Item 47)

47 Opting-In to Public Sector Audit Appointments Ltd pdf icon PDF 158 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Members considered the Opting-In to Public Sector Audit Appointments (PSAA) Ltd. The report was introduced by the S151 Officer, who briefed the Committee on the next round of choosing external auditors, with the current external auditors (Mazars) arrangements due to expire in 2022/23.

 

Mazars was procured in Public Sector Audit Appointments Company, which was incorporated by the Local Government Agency in 2016. The PSAA had contacted all local authorities to participate in next round of tendering and contracting process. Members attention was drawn to both the advantages and disadvantages of entering into the PSAA process, with the S151 Officer advising that her recommendation to Members would be that the Authority entered the joint procurement process.

 

In response to Members’ comments and questions further information was provided, during which Members’ attention was brought to a number of issues.

 

It was explained that this procurement process happened every four years, with Lincolnshire County Council having gone through a similar process. However, it was stated by the Chairman that the procurement process may not give the same auditors again. Members’ were asked to consider that there had been a previous issue with the ‘over-optimism’ of what the external auditors could achieve with the price quoted.

 

With concern of discrepancies with past accounts, including in the 2018-19 accounts, and the issue of local authorities individually accessing external auditors, there was a general consensus that working with other local authorities would allow for better bargaining and the best possible help to getting auditors. One Member raised that it would facilitate the best procurement advice. References were also made to the difficulty in the accounting sector for local authorities to get a wide array of options.

 

Having been moved and seconded on being put to the vote it was unanimously:

 

RESOLVED that it be RECOMMENDED to Full Council that the invitation of opting into the PSAA sector led option for the appointment of external auditors for the period 2023/24 to 2027/28 be accepted.