Holiday Inn 2015 Annual Report Download - page 88

Independent Auditor’s US Report
Report of independent registered public accounting firm on internal
control over financial reporting
To the Board of Directors and Shareholders of InterContinental Hotels
Group PLC.
We have audited InterContinental Hotels Group PLC’s internal control
over financial reporting as of 31 December 2015, based on criteria
established in Internal Control—Integrated Framework issued by the
Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission
(2013 framework) (the COSO criteria). InterContinental Hotels Group
PLC’s management is responsible for maintaining effective internal
control over financial reporting, and for its assessment of the
effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting included
in the accompanying Management’s report on internal control over
financial reporting. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the
Group’s internal control over financial reporting based on our audit.
We conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the Public
Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States). Those standards
require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable
assurance about whether effective internal control over financial
reporting was maintained in all material respects. Our audit included
obtaining an understanding of internal control over financial reporting,
assessing the risk that a material weakness exists, testing and
evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of internal control
based on the assessed risk, and performing such other procedures
as we considered necessary in the circumstances. We believe that
our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.
A company’s internal control over financial reporting is a process
designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability
of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for
external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting
principles. A company’s internal control over financial reporting
includes those policies and procedures that (1) pertain to the
maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly
reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the company;
(2) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as
necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance
with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and
expenditures of the company are being made only in accordance with
authorisations of management and directors of the company; and (3)
provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection
of unauthorised acquisition, use, or disposition of the company’s assets
that could have a material effect on the financial statements.
Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial
reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections
of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to
the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes
in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies
or procedures may deteriorate.
In our opinion, InterContinental Hotels Group PLC maintained,
in all material respects, effective internal control over financial
reporting as of 31 December 2015, based on the COSO criteria.
We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the
Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States),
the accompanying 2015 Consolidated Financial Statements
of InterContinental Hotels Group PLC, and our report dated
22 February 2016 expressed an unqualified opinion thereon.
ERNST & YOUNG LLP
London, England
22 February 2016
Report of independent registered public accounting firm
To the Board of Directors and Shareholders of InterContinental Hotels
Group PLC.
We have audited the accompanying Group statement of financial
position of InterContinental Hotels Group PLC as of 31 December 2015
and 2014, and the related Group statements of income, comprehensive
income, changes in equity and cash flows for each of the three years in
the period ended 31 December 2015. These Financial Statements are
the responsibility of the Group’s management. Our responsibility is to
express an opinion on these Financial Statements based on our audits.
We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the Public
Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States). Those standards
require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable
assurance about whether the Financial Statements are free of material
misstatement. An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence
supporting the amounts and disclosures in the Financial Statements.
An audit also includes assessing the accounting principles used and
significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the
overall financial statement presentation. We believe that our audits
provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.
In our opinion, the Financial Statements referred to above present
fairly, in all material respects, the consolidated financial position of
InterContinental Hotels Group PLC at 31 December 2015 and 2014,
and the consolidated results of its operations and its cash flows for
each of the three years in the period ended 31 December 2015, in
conformity with International Financial Reporting Standards as
issued by the International Accounting Standards Board.
We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public
Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States), InterContinental
Hotels Group PLC’s internal control over financial reporting as of
31 December 2015, based on criteria established in Internal Control-
Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring
Organizations of the Treadway Commission (2013 framework),
and our report dated 22 February 2016 expressed an unqualified
opinion thereon.
ERNST & YOUNG LLP
London, England
22 February 2016
Notes:
a The maintenance and integrity of the InterContinental Hotels Group PLC website is
the responsibility of the Directors; the work carried out by the auditors does not involve
consideration of these matters and, accordingly, the auditors accept no responsibility for
any changes that may have occurred to the Financial Statements since they were initially
presented on the website.
b Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of
Financial Statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.
86 IHG Annual Report and Form 20-F 2015