Charities Act (Northern Ireland) 2008

Investigation of accounts

104.—(1) In the case of a charity which is a company the Commission may by order require that the condition and relevant accounts of the charity for such period as the Commission thinks fit shall be investigated and audited by an auditor appointed by the Commission, being a person eligible for appointment as a statutory auditor under Part 42 of the Companies Act 2006 (c. 46).

(2) “Relevant accounts” means accounts required to be audited under Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006.

(3) An auditor acting under subsection (1)—

(a) shall have a right of access to all books, accounts and documents relating to the charity which are in the possession or control of the charity trustees or to which the charity trustees have access;

(b) shall be entitled to require from any charity trustee, past or present, and from any past or present officer or employee of the charity such information and explanation as the auditor thinks necessary for the performance of the auditor’s duties;

(c) shall at the conclusion or during the progress of the audit make such reports to the Commission about the audit or about the accounts or affairs of the charity as the auditor thinks the case requires, and shall send a copy of any such report to the charity trustees.

(4) The expenses of any audit under subsection (1), including the remuneration of the auditor, shall be paid by the Commission.

(5) If any person fails to afford an auditor any facility to which the auditor is entitled under subsection (3) the Commission may by order give to that person or to the charity trustees for the time being such directions as the Commission thinks appropriate for securing that the default is made good.