Annual Report & Accounts 1997-98

For the Year 1997/98 - Accounts

The Certificate and Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General to the House of Commons

I certify that I have audited the financial statements on pages 26 to 37 under the Exchequer and Audit Departments Act 1921. These financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention as modified by the revaluation of certain fixed assets and the accounting policies set out on printed pages 29 to 30.

Respective Responsibilities of the Agency and the Chief Executive and Auditors
As described on page 24, the Agency and the Chief Executive are responsible for the preparation of financial statements and for ensuring the regularity of financial transactions. It is my responsibility to form an independent opinion, based on my audit, on those statements and on the regularity of the financial transactions included in them and to report my opinion to you.

Basis of Opinion
I conducted my audit in accordance with Auditing Standards issued by the Auditing Practices Board. An audit includes examination, on a test basis, of evidence relevant to the amounts, disclosures and regularity of financial transactions included in the financial statements. It also includes an assessment of the significant estimates and judgements made by the Agency and the Chief Executive in the preparation of the financial statements, and of whether the accounting policies are appropriate to the Agency's circumstances, consistently applied and adequately disclosed.

I planned and performed my audit so as to obtain all the information and explanations which I considered necessary in order to provide me with sufficient evidence to give reasonable assurance that the financial statements are free from material misstatement, whether caused by error, or by fraud or other irregularity and that, in all material respects, the expenditure and income have been applied to the purposes intended by Parliament and the financial transactions conform to the authorities which govern them. In forming my opinion I have also evaluated the overall adequacy of the presentation of information in the financial statements.

Opinion
In my opinion:

• the financial statements give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Radiocommunications Agency at 31 March 1998 and of its surplus, total recognised gains and losses and cash flows for the year then ended and have been properly prepared in accordance with the Exchequer and Audit Departments Act 1921 and with the directions made thereunder by the Treasury;

• in all material respects the expenditure and income have been applied to the purposes intended by Parliament and the financial transactions conform to the authorities which govern them.

I have no observations to make on these financial statements.

John Bourn
Comptroller and Auditor General
8 July 1998

National Audit Office
157-197 Buckingham Palace Road
Victoria, London SWIW 9SP

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