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ACCA Strategic Professional · Advanced Audit and Assurance (International) · The audit of performance information (pre-determined objectives) in the public sector

A public sector auditor is assessing the evidence for the indicator 'percentage of citizen complaints resolved within 10 working days' at a housing agency. The agency was unable to provide the complaints log for two of the twelve months, stating the records were lost. What is the MOST appropriate action by the auditor?

The auditor should treat the missing records as a limitation, try alternative procedures to corroborate the two missing months, and, if sufficient appropriate evidence still cannot be obtained, consider modifying the conclusion. Estimating from other months or only mentioning it in a management letter would be inappropriate.

  1. AAccept the annual percentage since ten months of data are available
  2. BTreat the lack of records as a limitation on evidence, perform alternative procedures where possible, and consider a modified conclusion if sufficient appropriate evidence cannot be obtainedCorrect
  3. CReplace the missing months with the average of the other ten months and report the result as audited
  4. DReport the matter only in the management letter without considering the audit conclusion

Explanation

Missing records mean the auditor may be unable to obtain sufficient appropriate evidence for part of the indicator. The auditor should try alternative procedures, such as corroborating through other systems or correspondence, and if still insufficient, consider a modified conclusion. Extrapolating the missing months is fabricating evidence, and limiting the matter to the management letter ignores its effect on the conclusion.

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