Stratford District Council gets clean bill of health from audit

The Stratford District Council has received a clean bill of health from Audit NZ about their Annual Report.

The Annual Report sets out the District Council’s financial and non-financial performance for each financial year. Audit New Zealand reviews this document to ensure the financial statements, performance information and other requirements are accurate.

David Walker, on behalf of the Auditor-General, writes: “the audit covers the Stratford District Council’s compliance with the requirements of Schedule 10 of the Local Government Act 2002 that apply to the annual report of the District Council and group for the year ended 30 June 2008, including the financial statements.”

“In our opinion, the financial statements… comply with generally accepted accounting practice in New Zealand, and fairly reflect the District Council’s financial position as at 30 June 2008.”

The financial statements show that the District Council collected total revenue of $12.6 million, and has expenditure of $10.5 million. The total assets of the Stratford District Council are valued at $266.7 million.

Michael Freeman, CEO, says “the District Council works hard to make sure we comply with all our legal obligations, and we’re pleased to have Audit New Zealand come back with the same opinion.”