Water Act 1989

Accounts

21 (1) It shall be the duty of the Authority—

(a) to keep proper accounts and proper records in relation to the accounts; and

(b) to prepare in respect of each accounting year a statement of accounts giving a true and fair view of the state of affairs and the income and expenditure of the Authority.

(2) Every statement of accounts prepared by the Authority in accordance with this paragraph shall comply with any requirement which the relevant Ministers have, with the consent of the Treasury, notified in writing to the Authority and which relates to any of the following matters, namely—

(a) the information to be contained in the statement;

(b) the manner in which that information is to be presented;

(c) the methods and principles according to which the statement is to be prepared;

and such a requirement may impose an obligation on the Authority to prepare accounts in respect of the financial year current when section 1 of this Act comes into force on such assumptions as may be specified in the requirement.

(3) Subject to sub-paragraph (4) below, in this paragraph and paragraph 22 below “accounting year”, in relation to the Authority, means a financial year.

(4) If the Secretary of State so directs in relation to any accounting year of the Authority, that accounting year shall end with such date other than the next 31st March as may be specified in the direction; and, where the Secretary of State has given such a direction, the following accounting year shall begin with the day after the date so specified and, subject to any further direction under this sub-paragraph, shall end with the next 31st March.