The Watford Observer has been told the following. It seems that HCC thinks that keeping your books in order and knowing what money you have and where it is going somehow does not matter. Any householder in Hertfordshire who took this attitude would soon find that they were in financially difficult straits.
Quote given to Watford Observer:
A Hertfordshire County Council representative said: “The £21m over-estimation on our draft accounts resulted from a presentational error, where a figure was placed in the wrong area of the balance sheet.
“This has no financial consequence – it does not impact on council tax. The Audit Commission identified the source of this error and we are currently working with the auditors to correct this.
“Our final accounts will be published and audited by the end of October in agreement with the Audit Commission.”