§ MR. SLOANTo ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether he is aware that in the majority of cases the audits carried out under the Irish Local Government Board are in the hands of men who are without 223 any experience or training or technical qualifications; and that, in return for the services of these officials, each public body is obliged to repay to the Treasury an annual fee, fied by the Local Government Board, without any regard to the volume of work done; and wether, seeing that this fee is usually more than double what would secure an exhaustive examination of the same accounts by a fully qualified public accountant, holding a leading position in his profession, he proposes to takes any action in the matter.
(Answered by Mr. Bryce.) No person can be appointed an auditor of the Local Government Board in Ireland who is not certified by the Civil Service Commissioners as qualified for the position, after an examination which includes technical qualifications. The volume of work to be done and the time occupied by the auditor are determining factors in arriving at the fee charged for the audit of the accounts of public bodies. The Local Government Board have no definite information as to any scale which might regulate the charges likely to be made by qualified public accountants; but the board are satisfied that their audit fees are not excessive, and that they would compare favourably with the fees which would be charged for similar work by such accountants.