Agenda and draft minutes

Councillor Mark Strong together with Mr Andrew Blakemore apologised for their inability to attend the meeting due to being on other Council duties.

None.

Councillor Keith Henson declared a personal interest in item 6.

It was AGREED to note the content of the Audit Wales – Audit Enquiries Letter 2023-24

Consideration was given to the Annual Governance Statement 2023-24.

It was AGREED to:

i)      note and consider its contents, and

ii)     recommend that Council approves the Annual Governance Statement 2023-24.

Members wished to thank Officers for revising and streamlining the AGS template, which was now far more user friendly.

The Corporate Lead Officer- Finance and Procurement presented the Ceredigion County Council and Ceredigion Harbour Authority Statement of Accounts 2023/24 highlighting both procedural and presentational matters to include an explanation on the misleading report in the local press regarding the increase in the number of senior officers receiving higher salaries. He stated that this was an incorrect statement and was as result of fiscal drag and tax thresholds. The majority of the employees reported in the salary table were school based such as headteachers

The Committee commented upon and queried certain matters on the accounts.

Members thanked the Corporate Lead Officer - Finance and Procurement and Corporate Manager - Core Finance and their staff for their hard work in producing the Statement.

It was AGREED to recommend to Council that the Statement of Accounts for Ceredigion County Council and Ceredigion Harbour Authority Statements of Accounts for 2023/24 be approved as presented and that a Member of the Committee would report the Committee’s recommendation to Council that afternoon.

The Chairman welcomed to the meeting Mr Derwyn Owen from Audit Wales to introduce the report.

Mr Owen highlighted the information contained in the report to Members. Congratulations were extended to the Corporate Lead Officer - Finance and Procurement and his Officers on their work in completing the audit.

Mr Owen explained that Audit Wales intended to issue an unqualified audit opinion on the accounts for 2023-24, once the Local Authority had provided them with a Letter of Representation following the Full Council meeting later that afternoon.

Committee Members thanked all concerned, the Officers of the Council and Audit Wales, for the co-operation shown in the audit of accounts and welcomed a positive report.

It was AGREED:

i)      to note the content of the report;

ii)     to congratulate the service on this excellent report; and that an item  would be included on the Committee’s Forward Work Programme to receive a progress update relating to Property, Plant and Equipment audit and valuation matters.

None.