FINANCE

Each year the council is required to appoint an internal auditor who carries out an audit of the accounts, prior to them being submitted to the council for formal approval at a council meeting.

In addition the Welsh Government appoint an external auditor to whom the accounts are submitted for further audit. Following completion of this audit the accounts are made available for public inspection.

Members and officers of the council are responsible for the conduct of public business and for spending public money, and they are accountable for ensuring they do this in accordance with the law and proper standards. They must ensure they safeguard, properly account for and use economically, efficiently and effectively, the council’s public money.

Members and officers are responsible for putting in place proper arrangements for the governance of their affairs and the stewardship of the resources at their disposal.

In order to inform members of the public the council is required to prepare a report on its activities for the year. The report must be externally audited and published, and takes the form of the Annual Accounts.

In addition to approving the accounting statements, members must also provide a written annual governance statement. Their views must be based on adequate information about the operation of internal controls, within the council. Internal controls are the checks and balances the council uses to make sure it properly uses and monitors its money and assets and properly records this use.

The main tools the council uses for doing this are the budget setting process and the budget monitoring system.

For further information on Council Budgets, Budget Monitoring and Annual Accounts please click on the appropriate links below.