BT 2007 Annual Report Download - page 76

UNITED KINGDOM OPINION
Independent auditors’ report to the members of BT
Group plc
We have audited the group financial statements of BT Group plc
for the year ended 31 March 2007 which comprise the group
income statement, the group balance sheet, the group cash flow
statement, the group statement of recognised income and
expense, accounting policies and the related notes. These group
financial statements are set out on pages 78 to 142 and 148.
These group financial statements have been prepared under the
accounting policies set out therein.
We have reported separately on the parent company financial
statements of BT Group plc for the year ended 31 March 2007
and on the information in the Report on directors’ remuneration
that is described as having been audited. This separate report is
set out on page 144.
Respective responsibilities of directors and auditors
The directors’ responsibilities for preparing the Annual Report
and the group financial statements in accordance with applicable
law and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) as
adopted by the European Union are set out in the statement of
directors’ responsibilities.
Our responsibility is to audit the group financial statements in
accordance with relevant legal and regulatory requirements and
International Standards on Auditing (UK and Ireland). This
report, including the opinion, has been prepared for and only
for the company’s members as a body in accordance with
Section 235 of the Companies Act 1985 and for no other
purpose. We do not, in giving this opinion, accept or assume
responsibility for any other purpose or to any other person to
whom this report is shown or into whose hands it may come
save where expressly agreed by our prior consent in writing.
We report to you our opinion as to whether the group
financial statements give a true and fair view and whether the
group financial statements have been properly prepared in
accordance with the Companies Act 1985 and Article 4 of the
IAS Regulation. We also report to you whether in our opinion
the information given in the Report of the Directors is consistent
with the group financial statements.
In addition we report to you if, in our opinion, we have not
received all the information and explanations we require for our
audit, or if information specified by law regarding directors’
remuneration and other transactions is not disclosed.
We review whether the Corporate governance statement
reflects the company’s compliance with the nine provisions of
the Combined Code (2003) specified for our review by the
Listing Rules of the Financial Services Authority, and we report if
it does not. We are not required to consider whether the board’s
statements on internal control cover all risks and controls, or
form an opinion on the effectiveness of the group’s corporate
governance procedures or its risk and control procedures.
We read other information contained in the Annual Report and
Form 20-F and consider whether it is consistent with the
audited group financial statements. The other information
comprises only BT at a glance, the Chairman’s message, the
Chief Executive’s statement and the Report of the Directors. We
consider the implications for our report if we become aware of
any apparent misstatements or material inconsistencies with the
group financial statements. Our responsibilities do not extend to
any other information.
Basis of audit opinion
We conducted our audit in accordance with International
Standards on Auditing (UK and Ireland) issued by the Auditing
Practices Board. An audit includes examination, on a test basis,
of evidence relevant to the amounts and disclosures in the
group financial statements. It also includes an assessment of the
significant estimates and judgments made by the directors in the
preparation of the group financial statements, and of whether
the accounting policies are appropriate to the group’s
circumstances, consistently applied and adequately disclosed.
We planned and performed our audit so as to obtain all the
information and explanations which we considered necessary in
order to provide us with sufficient evidence to give reasonable
assurance that the group financial statements are free from
material misstatement, whether caused by fraud or other
irregularity or error. In forming our opinion we also evaluated
the overall adequacy of the presentation of information in the
group financial statements.
Opinion
In our opinion:
rthe group financial statements give a true and fair view, in
accordance with IFRSs as adopted by the European Union, of
the state of the group’s affairs as at 31 March 2007 and of
its profit and cash flows for the year then ended;
rthe group financial statements have been properly prepared in
accordance with the Companies Act 1985 and Article 4 of the
IAS Regulation; and
rthe information given in the Report of the Directors is
consistent with the group financial statements.
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Chartered Accountants and Registered Auditors
London, United Kingdom
16 May 2007
Financial statements
Report of the independent auditors
BT Group plc Annual Report & Form 20-F 75
Financial statements