(1)A person who has functions under or by virtue of this Chapter must have regard to any guidance issued by the Welsh Ministers about the exercise of those functions.
(2)In exercising a function under this Chapter which relates to an assessment of the extent to which a principal council is meeting the performance requirements, a person must have regard to any guidance issued by the Welsh Ministers about the performance requirements.
(3)The requirements of this section do not apply to—
(a)the Auditor General for Wales or a person exercising a function of the Auditor General for Wales under this Chapter (by virtue of a delegation made under section 18 of the Public Audit (Wales) Act 2013 (anaw 3));
(b)a principal council (see section 89(3) which deals with guidance to principal councils).