Public Health Act 1875

Audit of Accounts of Local Authorities.

245Accounts of local authorities.

Accounts of the receipts and .expenditure under this Act of every local authority shall be made up in such form and to such day in every year as the Local Government Board may appoint.

246Audit where urban authority are a town council.

Where an urban authority are the council of a borough the accounts of the receipts and expenditure under this Act of such authority shall be audited and examined by the auditors of the borough, and shall be published in like manner, and at the same time as the municipal accounts, and the auditors shall proceed in the audit after like notice and in like manner, shall have like powers and authorities, and perform like duties, as in the case of auditing the municipal accounts.

Each of such auditors shall in respect of each audit be paid such reasonable remuneration, not being less than two guineas for every day in which they are employed in such audit, as such authority from time to time appoint. Any order of such authority for the payment of any money may be removed by certiorari, and like proceedings may be had thereon as under section forty-four of the Act of the first year of Her Majesty, chapter seventy-eight, with respect to orders of the council of a borough for payments out of the borough fund.

247Audit where urban authority are not a town council.

Where an urban authority are not the council of a borough the following regulations with respect to audit shall be observed ; (namely,)

(1)The accounts of the receipts and expenditure under this Act of such authority shall be audited and examined once in every year, as soon as can be after the twenty-fifth day of March, by the auditor of accounts relating to the relief of the poor for the union in which the district of such authority or the greater part thereof is situate, unless such auditor is a member of the authority whose accounts he is appointed to audit, in which case such accounts shall be audited by such auditor of any adjoining union as may from time to time be appointed by the Local Government Board :

(2)There shall be paid to such auditor in respect of each audit under this Act, such reasonable remuneration, not being less than two guineas for every day in which he is employed in such audit, as such authority from time to time appoint, together with his expenses of travelling to and from the place of audit :

(3)Before each audit such authority shall, after receiving from the auditor the requisite appointment, give at least fourteen days notice of the time and place at which the same will be made, and of the deposit of accounts required by this section, by advertisement in some one or more of the local newspapers circulated in the district ; and the production of the newspaper containing such notice shall be deemed to be sufficient proof of such notice on airy proceeding whatsoever:

(4)A copy of the accounts duly made up and balanced, together with all rate books account books deeds contracts accounts vouchers and receipts mentioned or referred to in such accounts, shall be deposited in the office of such authority, and be open, during office hours thereat, to the inspection of all persons interested for seven clear days before the audit, and all such persons shall be at liberty to take copies of or extracts from the same, without fee or reward ; and any officer of such authority duly appointed in that behalf neglecting to make up such accounts and books, or altering such accounts and books, or allowing them to be altered when so made up, or refusing to allow inspection thereof, shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding five pounds :

(5)For the purpose of any audit under this Act, every auditor may, by summons in writing, require the production before him of all books deeds contracts accounts vouchers receipts and other documents and papers which he may deem necessary, and may require any person holding or accountable for any such books deeds contracts accounts vouchers receipts documents or papers to appear before him at any such audit or any adjournment thereof, and to make and sign a declaration as to the correctness of the same ; and if any such person neglects or refuses so to do, or to produce any such books deeds contracts accounts vouchers receipts documents or papers, or to make or sign such declaration, he shall incur for every neglect or refusal a penalty not exceeding forty shillings ; and if he falsely or corruptly makes or signs any such declaration, knowing the same to be untrue in any material particular, he shall be liable to the penalties inflicted on persons guilty of wilful and corrupt perjury :

(6)Any ratepayer or owner of property in the district may be present at the audit, and may make any objection to such accounts before the auditor; and such ratepayers and owners shall have the same right of appeal against allowances by an auditor as they have by law against disallowances :

(7)Any auditor acting in pursuance of this section shall disallow every item of account contrary to law, and surcharge the same on the person making or authorising the making of the illegal payment, and shall charge against any person accounting the amount of any deficiency or loss incurred by the negligence or misconduct of that person, or of any sum which ought to have been but is not brought into account by that person, and shall in every such case certify the amount, due from such person, and on application by any party aggrieved shall state in writing the reasons for his decision in respect of such disallowance or surcharge, and also of any allowance which he may have made :

(8)Any person aggrieved by disallowance made may apply to the Court of Queen's Bench for a writ of certiorari to remove the disallowance into the said court, in the same manner and subject to the same conditions as are provided in the case of disallowances by auditors under the laws for the time being in force with regard to the relief of the poor ; and the said court shall have the same powers with respect to allowances disallowances and surcharges under this Act as it has with respect to disallowances or allowances by the said auditors ; or in lieu of such application any person so aggrieved may appeal to the Local Government Board, which Board shall have the same powers in the case of the appeal as it possesses in the case of appeals against allowances disallowances and surcharges by the said poor law auditors :

(9)Every sum certified to be due from any person by an auditor under this Act shall be paid by such person to the treasurer of such authority within fourteen days after the same has been so certified, unless there is an appeal against the decision ; and if such sum is not so paid, and there is no such appeal, the auditor shall recover the same from the person against whom the same has been certified to be due by the like process and with the like powers as in the case of sums certified on the audit of the poor rate accounts, and shall be paid by such authority all such costs and expenses, including a reasonable compensation for loss of time incurred by him in such proceedings, as are not recovered by him from such person :

(10)Within fourteen days after the completion of the audit, the auditor shall report on the accounts audited and examined, and shall deliver such report to the clerk of such authority, who shall cause the same to be deposited in their office, and shall publish an abstract of such accounts in some one or more of the local newspapers circulated in the district.

Where the provisions as to audit of any local Act constituting a board of improvement commissioners are repugnant to or inconsistent with those of this Act, the audit of the accounts of such improvement commissioners shall be conducted in all respects in accordance with the provisions of this Act.

248Audit of accounts of rural authority.

The accounts under this Act of every rural authority shall be audited by the same persons and in every respect in the same manner as the accounts of guardians are audited under the Acts for the relief of the poor for the time being in force.

The accounts of the overseers collecting or paying any money for the purposes of this Act shall be audited in the same manner as the accounts of overseers collecting or paying any money for the purposes of the Acts relating to the relief of the poor for the time being in force.

An auditor shall, with respect to the accounts audited under this section, have the like powers and be subject to the like obligations in every respect as in the case of an audit under the Acts relating to the relief of the poor, and any person aggrieved by the decision of the auditor shall have the like rights and remedies as in the case of such last-mentioned audit.

249Taxation of bill of solicitor or attorney.

On the application of any local authority whose accounts are required by this Act to be audited to the clerk of the peace of the county in which the district of such authority is wholly or in part situated, the said clerk or his deputy shall tax any bill due to any solicitor or attorney in respect of legal business performed on behalf of such authority; and the allowance of any sum on such taxation shall be prima facie evidence of the reasonableness of the amount, but not of the legality of the charge.

The clerk of the peace shall be allowed for such taxation a remuneration after the rate to be fixed by the master of the Crown Office, and declared by an order of the Local Government Board.

If any such bill is not taxed by the clerk of the peace or some other duly authorised taxing officer before being presented to the auditors or auditor, the decision of the auditors or auditor upon the reasonableness and the legality of the charge shall be final.

250Auditor to audit accounts of officers.

The accounts under this Act of officers or assistants of any local authority who are required to receive moneys or goods on behalf of such authority shall be audited by the auditors or auditor of the accounts of such authority, with the same powers incidents and consequences as in the case of such last-mentioned accounts.