Broadcasting Act 2009

Accounts and audits.

37.— (1) The chief executive, following the agreement of the Authority, shall not later than 30 September in each year, submit estimates of income and expenditure to the Minister in respect of the subsequent three financial years, in such form as may be required by the Minister, and shall furnish to the Minister any information which the Minister may require in relation to such estimates, including proposals and future plans relating to the performance by the Authority, the Contract Awards Committee and the Compliance Committee of their functions, as required.

(2) The chief executive, under the direction of the Authority, shall cause to be kept, on a continuous basis, all proper books and records of account of all income and expenditure of the Authority, and of the sources of such income and the subject matter of such expenditure, and of the property, assets and liabilities of the Authority and shall keep and shall account to the Authority for all such special accounts required by Part 10 , and as the Authority, with the consent of the Minister, or the Minister may from time to time direct should be kept.

(3) (a) The Authority, the chief executive and any relevant member of the staff of the Authority shall, whenever so requested by the Minister, permit any person appointed by the Minister to examine the books or other records of account of the Authority in respect of any financial year or other period and shall facilitate any such examination.

(b) In this subsection “relevant member of the staff of the Authority” means a member of the staff of the Authority in respect of whom there have been duly assigned duties which relate to the books or other records of account referred to in paragraph (a).

(4) The accounts of the Authority for each financial year shall be kept in such a form and manner as may be specified by the Minister with the consent of the Minister for Finance and be prepared by the chief executive and approved by the Authority as soon as practicable but not later than 3 months after the end of the financial year to which they relate for submission to the Comptroller and Auditor General for audit.

(5) A copy of the accounts referred to in subsection (4) and the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General thereon shall, immediately after the audit of the Comptroller and Auditor General, be presented to the members of the Authority and to the Minister as soon as may be but not later than 6 months after the end of the financial year to which they relate and the Minister shall cause a copy of these documents to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas.

(6) The financial year of the Authority shall be the period of 12 months ending on 31 December in any year, and for the purposes of this section the period commencing on the establishment day and ending on the following 31 December is deemed to be a financial year.

(7) The Authority shall publish, with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Finance, on a website maintained by the Authority, such estimates of income and expenditure as are required to be prepared under subsection (1) or a summary of them.