Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Question 351: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government his views regarding local government not being covered under the remit of the Committee of Public Accounts; his plans to introduce legislation or other measures to rectify this anomaly; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24909/11]

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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The audit of the accounts of all local authorities is required to be carried out by the independent Local Government Audit Service under the Local Government Act 2001. I have no plans at present to alter this statutory arrangement. The elected members of a local authority have direct responsibility in law for all reserved functions of the authority, which include adopting the annual budget and authorising borrowing, and are democratically accountable for all expenditure by the local authority.

In order to enhance the financial management and audit control systems in local authorities, an audit committee, with both councillor and expert external membership, is now in place in each county and city council. The functions of an audit committee are to review financial and budgetary reporting practices and procedures within a local authority, foster the development of best practice in the internal audit function, review auditors' reports and special reports and assess follow-up action by management, assess and promote efficiency and value for money, review risk management systems and make such recommendations to the authority as the committee considers appropriate in respect of such matters.

The Report of the Local Government Efficiency Review Group made a number of recommendations in relation to value for money and audit functions. In particular, it recommended that the Director of the Local Government Audit Service produce an annual report that takes a more strategic overview of financial management and audit issues across the local government sector, taking account of sectoral issues that emerge from the audit of individual local authorities. The Group considered that this report would provide the opportunity for the Director to put before my Department key issues for attention and for the local government sector to address. In addition, the Group recommended that this report should be sent to the relevant Oireachtas committee so that it can be discussed with the Director and relevant local government officials. The Group considered that this approach would facilitate Oireachtas oversight of local expenditure of central funds, while at the same time recognising that expenditure by local authorities is a matter of separate local democratic accountability. In accordance with this recommendation, the annual report of the Director of Audit of the Local Government Audit Service, covering local authority accounts for the year 2009, has been submitted to the Joint Committee on the Environment, Community and Local Government.