Issue - meetings

Preparation was underway for the closure of the 2012/13 accounts; the external auditors had been meeting with Council finance staff and a CIPFA network event was being held to support the closure of the accounts, which the Council would be attending. Towards a Tipping Point? – Grant Thornton’s second financial health review of local authorities had recently been published, and the annual review of governance was due to be published shortly. Both publications would be provided to the Council.

The Committee asked about a previous request regarding the auditing of the North London Waste Alliance (NLWA). It was reported that the NLWA’s decision-making process was not within the remit of the Council’s external auditors, but that Grant Thornton had asked the Council to look at whether it was satisfied regarding the arrangements for ensuring value for money with respect to the NLWA. It was noted that NLWA was audited in its own right, and it was agreed that its audited accounts for the previous year should be circulated to the Committee for information. It was noted that value for money issues around the NLWA were challenging, as the decisions made were against a background of changing market conditions, but that it was reasonable for the Council to set up a robust challenge around value for money issues.

RESOLVED

That the report be noted.