Barclays 2004 Annual Report Download - page 124

UK Audit Report of the Independent Auditors to the Members of
Barclays PLC
We have audited the accounts on pages 124 to 195 which comprise
the profit and loss account, the balance sheet, the cash flow statement,
the statement of total recognised gains and losses and the related
Notes which have been prepared under the historical cost convention,
as modified by the revaluation of certain assets, and the accounting
policies set out on pages 124 to 129.
We have also audited the disclosures required by Part 3 of Schedule 7A
to the Companies Act 1985 (‘the auditable part’) contained in the
Barclays Report on Remuneration contained on pages 31 to 38.
Respective Responsibilities of Directors and Auditors
The Directors’ responsibilities for preparing the Annual Report, the
Barclays Report on Remuneration and the accounts in accordance with
applicable United Kingdom law and accounting standards are set out
in the statement of Directors’ responsibilities on page 40.
Our responsibility is to audit the accounts and the auditable part of
the Barclays Report on Remuneration in accordance with relevant legal
and regulatory requirements and United Kingdom Auditing Standards
issued by the Auditing Practices Board. 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 in to 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 accounts give a true
and fair view and whether the accounts and the auditable part of the
Barclays Report on Remuneration have been properly prepared in
accordance with the Companies Act 1985. We also report to you if, in
our opinion, the Directors’ report is not consistent with the accounts,
if the Company or Group has not kept proper accounting records, if we
have not received all the information and explanations we require for
our audit, or if information specified by law regarding Directors’
remuneration and transactions is not disclosed.
We read the other information contained in the Annual Report and
consider the implications for our report if we become aware of any
apparent misstatements or material inconsistencies with the accounts.
The other information comprises only the Chairman’s Statement,
Group Chief Executive Statement, Group Finance Director’s Review,
Corporate Governance Report, the unaudited part of the Barclays
Report on Remuneration, Accountability and Audit, Presentation of
information, Risk Management, Financial Data, Business Description
and Financial Review.
We review whether the Corporate Governance Report reflects the
Company’s and Group’s compliance with the nine provisions of the
2003 FRC Combined Code 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 to form an opinion on the
effectiveness of the Company’s or Group’s Corporate governance
procedures or its risk and control procedures.
The maintenance and integrity of the Barclays 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.
Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and
dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in
other jurisdictions.
Basis of Audit Opinion
We conducted our audit in accordance with auditing standards issued
by the Auditing Practices Board. An audit includes examination, on
a test basis, of evidence relevant to the amounts and disclosures
in the accounts and the auditable part of the Barclays Report on
Remuneration. It also includes an assessment of the significant
estimates and judgements made by the Directors in the preparation of
the accounts, and of whether the accounting policies are appropriate
to the Company’s and 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 accounts and the auditable part of the Barclays Report on
Remuneration 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 accounts and the auditable part of the Barclays Report
on Remuneration.
Opinion
In our opinion:
•the accounts give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the
Company and the Group at 31st December 2004 and of the profit
and cash flows of the Group for the year then ended;
•the accounts have been properly prepared in accordance with the
Companies Act 1985; and
•those parts of the Barclays Report on Remuneration required by
Part 3 of Schedule 7A to the Companies Act 1985 have been
properly prepared in accordance with the Companies Act 1985.
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Chartered Accountants and Registered Auditors
London, United Kingdom, 10th March 2005
Independent Auditors’ reports
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