Barclays 2007 Annual Report Download - page 165

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Financial statements
Barclays PLC Annual Report 2007 163
Independent Auditors’ report
UK Audit Report of the Independent Auditors
to the members of Barclays PLC
We have audited the Group and Parent company financial statements
(the ‘financial statements’) of Barclays PLC (the ‘Company’) for the year
ended 31st December 2007 which comprise the Consolidated and Parent
company income statements, Consolidated and Parent company
balance sheets, Consolidated and Parent company cash flow statements,
Consolidated and Parent company statements of recognised income
and expense and the related notes in the section headed Notes to the
accounts. These financial statements have been prepared under the
accounting policies set out in the section headed Accounting policies.
We have also audited the information in the Remuneration report that
is described as having been audited (‘the auditable part’).
Respective responsibilities of Directors and Auditors
The Directors’ responsibilities for preparing the Annual Report and the
financial statements in accordance with applicable United Kingdom law
and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) as adopted by the
European Union are set out in the statement of Directors’ responsibilities
for the accounts within the section headed Accountability and audit.
The Directors are also responsible for preparing the Remuneration report.
Our responsibility is to audit the financial statements and the auditable
part of the Remuneration report 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 financial statements
give a true and fair view and whether the financial statements and the
auditable part of the Remuneration report have been properly prepared
in accordance with the Companies Act 1985 and, as regards the Group
financial statements, Article 4 of the IAS Regulation. We also report to
you whether in our opinion the information given in the Directors’ report
is consistent with the financial statements. In addition, we report to you
if, in our opinion, the Company 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 other transactions is not disclosed.
We review whether the Corporate governance report reflects the
Company’s and Group’s compliance with the nine provisions of the 2006
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 form an opinion on the effectiveness of the
Company’s or Group’s corporate governance procedures or its risk and
control procedures.
We read other information contained in the Annual Report and consider
whether it is consistent with the audited financial statements. The other
information comprises only the Chairman’s statement, Group Chief
Executive’s review, Financial review, Risk management, Directors’ report,
Corporate governance report, the unaudited part of the Remuneration
report, Accountability and audit and Presentation of information.
We consider the implications for our report if we become aware of any
apparent misstatements or material inconsistencies with the 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 financial statements and the auditable part of the
Remuneration report. It also includes an assessment of the significant
estimates and judgments made by the Directors in the preparation
of the financial statements, and of whether the accounting policies are
appropriate to the Group’s and Company’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 financial
statements and the auditable part of the Remuneration report 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 financial statements and the
auditable part of the Remuneration report.
Opinion
In our opinion:
– the 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
and the Parent company’s affairs as at 31st December 2007 and of the
Group’s and the Parent company’s profit and cash flows for the year
then ended;
– the financial statements and the auditable part of the Remuneration
report have been properly prepared in accordance with the Companies
Act 1985 and, as regards the Group financial statements, Article 4 of
the IAS Regulation; and
– the information given in the Directors’ report is consistent with the
financial statements.
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Chartered Accountants and Registered Auditors
London, United Kingdom
7th March 2008
Notes
aThe maintenance and integrity of the Barclays 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.
bLegislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of
financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.