Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of consecutive disclaimed audit opinions for Tees Valley Combined Authority accounts and the improvement requirements of the Best Value Notice process.

Audit opinions and compliance with the statutory audit requirements are an important part of the Department’s holistic assessment of a local authority’s delivery of Best Value. The Best Value Notice issued to Tees Valley Combined Authority sets clear expectations for the authority to comply with its external auditor’s recommendations, including delivering sustained improvement in financial governance, capacity and use of resources.