FINANCE GUIDANCE NOTE 2002/10: LAYING &
PUBLISHING ACCOUNTS
Purpose
1. This note is intended to reinforce existing guidance
on laying and publishing accounts subject to statutory
audit by the Auditor General for Scotland (AGS).
Key Points
2. Accounts must be sent to the AGS by the appointed
auditor, and subsequently sent formally by the AGS -
together with any reports - to the Scottish Ministers
before they are laid before the Parliament. And the
accounts, together with any reports must be laid before the
Parliament before they are published.
Background
3. Guidance on laying and publishing accounts subject to
statutory audit by the AGS is included in the sections of
the Scottish Public Finance Manual on
AGS:
Audit of Accounts and
Annual
Accounts. The statutory responsibilities of the AGS (or
auditors appointed by the AGS) and the Scottish Ministers
are set out in the Public Finance and Accountability
(Scotland) Act 2000. They are as follows:
- the account must be sent to the AGS for auditing no
later than 6 months after the end of the financial year
to which the account relates;
- the AGS decides who is to audit the account;
- the auditor must prepare a report setting out
his/her findings on certain specified matters;
- the auditor must send the account and his/her
report to the AGS who may prepare a report on the
account;
- the AGS must send the account, the auditor's report
and any report prepared by the AGS to the Scottish
Ministers in sufficient time to enable the Scottish
Ministers to fulfil their responsibilities; and
- the Scottish Ministers, not later than 9 months
after the end of the financial year to which the
account relates, must lay before the Parliament a copy
of every account and report sent to them by the AGS,
and arrange for their publication.
4. Technically the Scottish Ministers have
responsibility for the laying and publishing of all
accounts and reports received from the AGS. However, it is
accepted that it was not the intention of the legislation
that the Scottish Ministers should be responsible for the
publishing of any accounts other than those relating to the
Scottish Executive. Other bodies (including relevant
sponsored bodies) therefore arrange for the publishing of
their own accounts.
Timing
5. It follows from the above that accounts must be sent
to the AGS by the appointed auditor, and subsequently sent
formally by the AGS - together with any reports - to the
Scottish Ministers before they are laid before the
Parliament. (In practice the AGS via Audit Scotland will
send the accounts, together with any reports, to the
audited body or sponsor Department to arrange for laying by
Scottish Executive Legal and Parliamentary Services.) And
the accounts, together with any reports, must be laid
before the Parliament before they are published. These
requirements should be borne in mind by bodies when
agreeing timetables with auditors for the preparation of
accounts and in scheduling the publication of annual
reports and accounts. In particular, sufficient time should
be allowed for the AGS to consider the need for and, if
necessary, the preparation of, reports.
6. The separation between Audit Scotland as appointed
auditor for the purposes of performing the external audit
and reporting in terms of section 22(1) of the PFA Act, and
the AGS who may prepare a separate report under section
22(3), must always be borne in mind. (In practice, the
latter function is handled by the Directorate of Audit
Review within Audit Scotland.) Clearly, there has to be
appropriate communication between appointed auditors and
Audit Scotland/AGS to ensure suitable arrangements to
deliver the reporting elements of the process within a
reasonable timescale and to any administrative timetable
agreed for the laying and publishing of a body's
accounts.
Scottish Executive Finance
November 2002