Accounts and external audit
21(1)The Council must—
(a)keep proper accounts and proper records in relation to them, and
(b)prepare in respect of each financial year a statement of accounts.
(2)In preparing a statement of accounts, the Council must comply with any direction given by the Welsh Ministers as to—
(a)the form and content of such accounts;
(b)the methods and principles according to which the statement is to be prepared.
(3)No later than 31 August after the end of each financial year, the Council must submit a copy of its statement of accounts to—
(a)the Welsh Ministers, and
(b)the Auditor General for Wales.
(4)The Auditor General for Wales must—
(a)examine, certify and report on the statement of accounts, and
(b)no later than 4 months after the copy is submitted under sub-paragraph (3), lay before the National Assembly for Wales a copy of the certified statement and report.
(5)In this Schedule “financial year” means the period of 12 months ending on 31 March.