Council finances

Notice of appointment of a Local Auditor to North Tyneside Council from 2018/19

Under Section 8(2) of the Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014, this Authority must publish a notice relating to the appointment of its Local Auditor.

On 21 July 2017 North Tyneside Council made an appointment of a Local Auditor, as part of a collaborative procurement with Newcastle City Council and Northumberland County Council.  The Local Auditor appointed is Ernst and Young, and the period of their appointment is from 1 April 2018 until 31 March 2023.  

The independent Auditor Panel convened to advise North Tyneside Council on the selection and appointment of Local Auditor recommended the appointment of Ernst and Young for this period.  The report of the independent Auditor Panel was considered at a meeting of full Council on 20 July 2017 and is attached below.

Council’s decision at that meeting was to follow the advice of the independent Auditor Panel, and to endorse the Auditor Panel’s recommendation that Ernst and Young be appointed as Local Auditor for the period 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2023.

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Financial regulations

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Financial audit

External audit is an essential element in the process of accountability for public money and makes an important contribution to the stewardship of public resources and the corporate governance of public services.

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National fraud initiative

North Tyneside Council is required by law to protect the public funds it administers. It may share information provided to it with other bodies responsible for auditing, or administering public funds, or where undertaking a public function, in order to prevent and detect fraud.

To help do this, the Cabinet Office carries out the National Fraud Initiative data matching exercise.  This involves public bodies across the country sending in certain types of data to the Cabinet Office, which they then compare to spot any differences or anomalies in order to prevent and detect fraud.  Where a match is found it may indicate that there is an inconsistency which requires further investigation.  No assumption can be made as to whether there is fraud, error or other explanation until an investigation is carried out.

North Tyneside Council participates in the National Fraud Initiative data matching exercise to assist in the prevention and detection of fraud.  We are required to provide particular sets of data, including those noted below, to the Minister for the Cabinet Office for matching for each exercise.

  • Housing benefits
  • Council tax
  • Students eligible for a loan
  • Housing – current tenants, waiting list and right to buy
  • Trade creditors – payment history and standing data
  • Private supported care home residents
  • Personal budgets
  • Blue badges
  • Residents’ parking permits
  • Concessionary travel passes
  • Electoral register
  • Insurance claims
  • Licenses – taxi driver, market and personal alcohol
  • Payroll and pensions

The use of data by the Cabinet Office in a data matching exercise is carried out with statutory authority under Part 6 of the Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014.  It does not require the consent of the individuals concerned under the Data Protection Act or the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR).  Data matching by the Cabinet Office is subject to a code of practice.

Information on the Cabinet Office’s legal powers and the reasons why it matches particular information.

Contact us for more information.

Other financial information

Additional financial information relating to North Tyneside Council.

s106 Planning Obligations

Planning obligations under Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (as amended), commonly known as s106 agreements, are a mechanism which make a development proposal acceptable in planning terms, that would not otherwise be acceptable. They are focused on site specific mitigation of the impact of development. S106 agreements are often referred to as 'developer contributions' along with highway contributions and the Community Infrastructure Levy.

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1990/8/section/106

The Council reports in detail monies on received by North Tyneside Council under s106 obligations which have yet to be spent. These reports include the development they relate to and the planned usage, with comments.

Nationally Reported Statistics & Information

Local authority revenue expenditure and financing

This links to all documents relating to local authority revenue expenditure and financing. In any given year there should be a record of local government expenditure and finance, sorted by local authority. The information is often referred to as the RA and RO returns. The RA relates to the budgeted expenditure and financing, the RO is the outturn or actual expenditure and financing. The link to the government site where this information is held is below:

 https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/local-authority-revenue-expend...

From these sheets the local authority data relating to North Tyneside Council can be selected, providing spend information for the authority split by defined expenditure and financing categories.

Locally Reported Statistics & Information

This links to all documents relating to local authority revenue expenditure and financing reported by the authority.

Transparency Data

The Council publishes data under the Transparency agenda, which includes financial data. This can be found here:

https://my.northtyneside.gov.uk/category/1271/transparency

 

 Public Contracts Regulations 2015

Regulation 113 of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 requires all contracting authorities to pay undisputed invoices within 30 days. There is a requirement under Regulation 113(7) of the Public Contracts Regulations Act 2015 that from April 2016 onwards the authority must publicise the following information:

  • Percentage of Invoices to first tier suppliers/prime contractors of invoices (not under dispute) paid within 30 days
  • The total amount of interest that the contracting authority is liable to pay (whether or not paid) due to breach of Regulation 113
  • The actual amount of interest paid to suppliers due to a breach of Regulation 113

This information can be found below.

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