Annual Report and Accounts 2005 - Independent Auditor's Report to the Members of the Port of London Authority (PLA)
We have audited the financial statements of the Port of London Authority for the year ended 31 December 2005 which comprise the Profit and Loss account, the Statement of Total Recognised Gains and Losses, the Balance Sheet, the Cash Flow Statement and the related notes. These financial statements have been prepared under the accounting policies set out therein.
Respective responsibilities of members of the Port of London Authority and auditors
The members' responsibilities for preparing the Annual Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice) are set out in the Statement of the responsibilities of the members of the Port of London Authority.
Our responsibility is to audit the 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 PLA's members as a body 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 are properly prepared in accordance with Section 42 of the United Kingdom Harbours Act, 1964 as amended by the United Kingdom Transport Act, 1981. We also report to you if, in our opinion, the Report of the Board is not consistent with the financial statements, if the PLA 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 Board members' remuneration and other transactions is not disclosed.
We read other information contained in the Annual Report, and consider whether it is consistent with the audited financial statements. This other information comprises only the Report of the Board and the Chairman's Statement. 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. It also includes an assessment of the significant estimates and judgements made by the members of the PLA in the preparation of the financial statements, and of whether the accounting policies are appropriate to the PLA'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 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.
Opinion
In our opinion the financial statements:
- give a true and fair view, in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice of the state of the PLA's affairs as at 31 December 2005 and of its profit and cash flows for the year then ended; and
- have been properly prepared in accordance with the Harbours Act 1964, as amended by the Transport Act 1981.
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Chartered Accountants and Registered Auditors
Gatwick
4 April 2006
