Section 95 Review of audit and reporting arrangements at Secretary of State’s requestI1

In the Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014, after section 33A (inserted by section 94) insert—

“Review of audit and reporting arrangements at Secretary of State’s request

33B

(1)

If requested to do so by the Secretary of State, the Local Audit Office must—

(a)

carry out a review of a relevant authority’s audit and reporting arrangements, and

(b)

report the findings of the review to the authority and the Secretary of State.

(2)

An authority’s “audit and reporting arrangements” are the arrangements it has (or recently had) in place for the purposes of—

(a)

enabling it to discharge its functions under this Act, or

(b)

enabling a local auditor to discharge its functions in relation to the authority.

(3)

A request by the Secretary of State under this section—

(a)

may require or permit the review to be limited to certain aspects of the authority’s audit and reporting arrangements;

(b)

must specify the time by which the Office is to submit its report;

(c)

may be varied or withdrawn by notice to the Office.

(4)

Section 22 (right to documents and information) applies in relation to the Office and its functions under this section as it applies in relation to a local auditor and its functions under this Act.

(5)

But section 23 (offences of obstruction and non-compliance) does not apply in relation to section 22 as applied by subsection (4) (“the applied section 22”).

(6)

If the High Court is satisfied, on an application by the Office, that any person has—

(a)

obstructed the exercise of any power conferred by the applied section 22, or

(b)

failed to comply with any requirement of the applied section 22,

it may order the person to take such steps as it considers will remedy the obstruction or non-compliance.

(7)

The Secretary of State must publish a summary of any findings reported under this section.”