PART VPackaged Goods
Co-ordination of control
61Accounts and audit
1
It shall be the duty of the Unit—
a
to keep proper accounts and proper records in relation to the accounts,
b
to prepare in respect of each accounting year a statement of those accounts, and
c
to send the statement to the auditors for the time being appointed in pursuance of this subsection and to do so within six months beginning with the last day of the accounting year to which the statement relates;
and the accounts kept and the statements prepared in pursuance of this subsection shall be audited by auditors appointed by the Unit.
2
A person shall not be qualified to be so appointed unless he is a member of one or more of the following bodies—
the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales,
the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland,
the Association of Certified Accountants,
the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland,
any other body of accountants established in the United Kingdom and for the time being recognised for the purposes of section 389(1)(a) of the [1985 c. 6.] Companies Act 1985 by the Secretary of State ;
but a Scottish firm may be so appointed if each of the partners in the firm is qualified to be so appointed.
3
It shall be the duty of the Unit to include, in the first report it makes under section 60 above after the accounts and statement of accounts of the Unit for any accounting year have been audited, a copy of the statement and of any report made by the auditors on the statement or the accounts.
4
In this section " accounting year " means the period of twelve months ending with 31st March in any year except that a particular accounting year shall, if the Secretary of State so directs, be such other period not longer than two years as is specified in the direction.