Reserve Bank of Australia Annual Report – 2013 Financial Statements Independent Auditor's Report

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INDEPENDENT AUDITOR'S REPORT

To the Treasurer

I have audited the accompanying financial statements of the Reserve Bank of Australia and the controlled entities for the year ended 30 June 2013, which comprise: a Directors' Statement; Statement of Financial Position; Statement of Comprehensive Income: Statement of Distribution; Statement of Changes in Capital and Reserves; Cash Flow Statement; and Notes to and Forming Part of the Financial Statements, including a summary of accounting policies. The consolidated entity comprises the Reserve Bank of Australia and the entity it controlled during the financial year.

Directors' Responsibility Jar the Financial Statements

The directors of the Reserve Bank of Australia are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements that give a true and fair view in accordance with the Finance Minister's Orders made under the Commonwealth Authorities and Companies Act 1997, including the Australian Accounting Standards, and for such internal control as is necessary to enable the preparation of the financial statements that give a true and fair view and are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error. In Note 1, the directors also state, in accordance with Accounting Standard AASB 101 Presentation of Financial Statements, that the financial statements comply with International Financial Reporting Standards.

Auditor's Responsibility

My responsibility is to express an opinion on the financial statements based on my audit. I have conducted my audit in accordance with the Australian National Audit Office Auditing Standards, which incorporate Australian Auditing Standards. These auditing standards require that I comply with relevant ethical requirements relating to audit engagements and plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free from material misstatement.

An audit involves performing procedures to obtain audit evidence about the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. The procedures selected depend on the auditor's judgement, including the assessment of the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to fraud or error. In making those risk assessments, the auditor considers internal control relevant to the Reserve Bank of Australia's preparation of the financial statements that give a true and fair view in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Reserve Bank of Australia's internal control. An audit also includes evaluating the appropriateness of the accounting policies used and the reasonableness of accounting estimates made by the directors, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements.

I believe that the audit evidence I have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for my audit opinion.

Independence

In conducting my audit, I have followed the independence requirements of the Australian National Audit Office, which incorporate the requirements of the Australian accounting profession.

Opinion

In my opinion, the financial statements of the Reserve Bank of Australia:

  1. have been prepared in accordance with the Finance Minister's Orders made under the Commonwealth Authorities and Companies Act 1997, including the Australian Accounting Standards;
  2. give a true and fair view of the matters required by the Finance Minister's Orders including the consolidated entity's financial position as at 30 June 2013 and of its financial performance and cash flows for the year then ended; and
  3. comply with International Financial Reporting Standards as disclosed in Note 1.

Australian National Audit Office

Signature of Ian McPhee, Auditor-General

Ian McPhee
Auditor-General

Canberra
2 September 2013

GPO Box 707 CANBERRA ACT 2601
19 National Circuit BARTON ACT
Phone (02) 6203 7500 Fax (02) 6273 5355
Email ian.mcphee@anao.gov.au