§ Mr. PaiceTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will increase the threshold above which parish councils must have their accounts audited by the nominees of the district council. [20896]
§ Mr. RaynsfordWe have no plans to change the arrangements for the audit of parish councils' accounts.
§ Mr. PaiceTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what representations he has received from parish councils regarding the choice of auditors for their accounts; and if he will make it his policy to allow parish councils to choose their own auditors from a nominated list held by the Audit Commission. [20897]
§ Mr. RaynsfordWe have received some representations from small parish councils about the cost of audit following the changes introduced by the Accounts and Audit Regulations in 1996. We have no plans to amend the current parish audit arrangements which conform to good audit practice, including that of the auditor's appointment being made independently of the body subject to audit.