Surcharge etc.
211.Part V of the Act makes a number of ancillary provisions relating to the audit framework for relevant authorities (as set out in the Audit Commission Act 1998). These include the repeal of the current surcharge provisions. They also remove the Secretary of State’s power to sanction items of account; this enables the Secretary of State to protect individuals from surcharge. Part V also includes arrangements to introduce a new system of advisory notices to enable auditors to seek a court decision about the legality of what an authority proposed to do. This replaces existing arrangements enabling auditors to issue prohibition orders.
