Audit report

Annual Report for the year ended 30 June 2008.


AUDIT REPORT TO THE READERS OF THE CONTROLLER AND AUDITOR-GENERAL'S FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND STATEMENT OF SERVICE PERFORMANCE FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2008
We have been appointed by the House of Representatives to carry out the audit of the financial statements and the statement of service performance included in the annual report of the Controller and Auditor-General for the year ended 30 June 2008. Unqualified Opinion In our opinion: The financial statements of the Controller and Auditor-General on pages 83 to 112: comply with generally accepted accounting practice in New Zealand; and fairly reflect: the Controller and Auditor-General's financial position as at 30 June 2008; the results of its operations and cash flows for the year ended on that date. The statement of service performance of the Controller and Auditor-General on pages 27 to 36, 42 to 44, 46, 50 to 54, and 57 to 59: complies with generally accepted accounting practice in New Zealand; and fairly reflects for each class of outputs: its standards of delivery performance achieved, as compared with the forecast standards outlined in the statement of forecast service performance adopted at the start of the financial year; and its actual revenue earned and output expenses incurred, as compared with the forecast revenues and output expenses outlined in the statement of forecast service performance adopted at the start of the financial year. The audit was completed on 30 September 2008, and is the date at which our opinion is expressed. The basis of our opinion is explained below. In addition, we outline the responsibilities of the Controller and Auditor-General and our responsibilities, and explain our independence. Basis of Opinion We carried out the audit in accordance with New Zealand Auditing Standards. We planned and performed the audit to obtain all the information and explanations we considered necessary in order to obtain reasonable assurance that the financial statements and the statement of service performance did not have material misstatements, whether caused by fraud or error. Material misstatements are differences or omissions of amounts and disclosures that would affect a reader's overall understanding of the financial statements and statement of service performance. If we had found material misstatements that were not corrected, we would have referred to them in our opinion. The audit involved performing procedures to test the information presented in the financial statements and statement of service performance. We assessed the results of those procedures in forming our opinion. Audit procedures generally include: determining whether significant financial and management controls are working and can be relied on to produce complete and accurate data; verifying samples of transactions and account balances; performing analyses to identify anomalies in the reported data; reviewing significant estimates and judgements made by the Controller and Auditor-General; confirming year-end balances; determining whether accounting policies are appropriate and consistently applied; and determining whether all financial statement and statement of service performance disclosures are adequate. We did not examine every transaction, nor do we guarantee complete accuracy of the financial statements and statement of service performance. We evaluated the overall adequacy of the presentation of information in the financial statements and statement of service performance. We obtained all the information and explanations we required to support our opinion above. Responsibilities of the Controller and Auditor-General and the Auditor The Controller and Auditor-General is responsible for preparing financial statements and statement of service performance in accordance with generally accepted accounting practice in New Zealand. The financial statements must fairly reflect the financial position of the Controller and Auditor-General as at 30 June 2008 and the results of its operations and cash flows for the year ended on that date. The statement of service performance must fairly reflect, for each class of outputs, the Controller and Auditor-General's standards of delivery performance achieved and revenue earned and expenses incurred, as compared with the forecast standards, revenue and expenses adopted at the start of the financial year. The Controller and Auditor-General's responsibility arises from sections 45A, 45B, and 45F of the Public Finance Act 1989. We are responsible for expressing an independent opinion on the financial statements and statement of service performance and reporting that opinion to you. This responsibility arises from section 38 of the Public Audit Act 2001 and sections 45D and 45F of the Public Finance Act 1989. Independence When carrying out the audit we followed the independence requirements of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of New Zealand. We carry out audit assignments on behalf of the Controller and Auditor-General. The level of work from these assignments is no greater than the level of work prior to our appointment as auditor. Other than the audit and these assignments, we have no relationship with or interests in the Controller and Auditor-General. CST Nexia Audit Chartered Accountants Manukau City, New Zealand Matters Relating to the Electronic Presentation of the Audited Financial Statements and Statement of Service Performance This audit report relates to the financial statements and statement of service performance of the Controller and Auditor-General for the year ended 30 June 2008 included on the Controller and Auditor-General's website. The Auditor-General is responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the Controller and Auditor-General's website. We have not been engaged to report on the integrity of the Controller and Auditor-General's website. We accept no responsibility for any changes that may have occurred to the financial statements and statement of service performance since they were initially presented on the website. The audit report refers only to the financial statements and statement of service performance named above. It does not provide an opinion on any other information which may have been hyperlinked to or from the financial statements and statement of service performance. If readers of this report are concerned with the inherent risks arising from electronic data communication they should refer to the published hard copy of the audited financial statements and statement of service performance and related audit report dated 30 September 2008 to confirm the information included in the audited financial statements and statement of service performance presented on this website. Legislation in New Zealand governing the preparation and dissemination of financial information may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.

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