
Baltic Classifieds Group PLC Annual Report and Accounts 2023
101
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Independent auditor’s report to the members of Baltic Classifieds Group PLC continued
and other management (as required by auditing standards),
and discussed with the directors and other management
the policies and procedures regarding compliance with laws
and regulations.
We
communicated
identified
laws
and
regulations
throughout our team and remained alert to any indications
of non-compliance throughout the audit. This included
communication from the Group audit team to full scope
component audit teams of relevant laws and regulations
identified at the Group level, and a request for full scope
component auditors to report to the Group audit team any
instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations that
could give rise to a material misstatement at the Group
level.
The potential effect of these laws and regulations on the
financial statements varies considerably.
Firstly, the Group is subject to laws and regulations that
directly affect the financial statements including financial
reporting
legislation
(including
related
companies
legislation), distributable profits legislation and taxation
legislation, and we assessed the extent of compliance with
these laws and regulations as part of our procedures on the
related financial statement items.
Secondly, the Group is subject to many other laws and
regulations where the consequences of non-compliance
could have a material effect on amounts or disclosures in the
financial statements, for instance through the imposition of
fines or litigation. We identified the following areas as those
most likely to have such an effect: data protection laws,
anti-competition, anti-bribery, employment law, consumer
protection and certain aspects of company legislation
recognising the nature of the Group’s activities. Auditing
standards limit the required audit procedures to identify
non-compliance with these laws and regulations to enquiry
of the directors and other management and inspection of
regulatory and legal correspondence, if any. Therefore if
a breach of operational regulations is not disclosed to us
or evident from relevant correspondence, an audit will not
detect that breach.
Context of the ability of the audit to detect fraud
or breaches of law or regulation
Owing to the inherent limitations of an audit, there is an
unavoidable risk that we may not have detected some
material misstatements in the financial statements, even
though we have properly planned and performed our audit
in accordance with auditing standards. For example, the
further removed non-compliance with laws and regulations
is from the events and transactions reflected in the financial
statements, the less likely the inherently limited procedures
required by auditing standards would identify it.
In addition, as with any audit, there remained a higher risk
of non-detection of fraud, as these may involve collusion,
forgery, intentional omissions, misrepresentations, or the
override of internal controls. Our audit procedures are
designed to detect material misstatement. We are not
responsible for preventing non-compliance or fraud and
cannot be expected to detect non-compliance with all laws
and regulations.
The directors are responsible for the other information
presented in the Annual Report together with the financial
statements.
Our opinion on the financial statements does
not cover the other information and, accordingly, we do
not express an audit opinion or, except as explicitly stated
below, any form of assurance conclusion thereon.
Our responsibility is to read the other information and,
in doing so, consider whether, based on our financial
statements audit work, the information therein is materially
misstated or inconsistent with the financial statements or
our audit knowledge.
Based solely on that work we have not
identified material misstatements in the other information.
Strategic report and directors’ report
Based solely on our work on the other information:
•
we have not identified material misstatements in the
strategic report and the directors’ report;
•
in our opinion the information given in those reports
for the financial year is consistent with the financial
statements; and
•
in our opinion those reports have been prepared in
accordance with the Companies Act 2006.
Directors’ remuneration report
In our opinion the part of the Directors’ Remuneration Report
to be audited has been properly prepared in accordance
with the Companies Act 2006.
Disclosures of emerging and principal risks and
longer-term viability
We are required to perform procedures to identify whether
there is a material inconsistency between the directors’
disclosures in respect of emerging and principal risks and
the viability statement, and the financial statements and our
audit knowledge.
7. We have nothing to report on the other information in the Annual Report
Based on those procedures, we have nothing material to
add or draw attention to in relation to:
•
the directors’ confirmation within Viability statement
page 49 that they have carried out a robust assessment
of the emerging and principal risks facing the Group,
including those that would threaten its business
model, future performance, solvency and liquidity;
•
the
Emerging
and
Principal
Risks
disclosures
describing these risks and how emerging risks are
identified, and explaining how they are being managed
and mitigated; and
•
the directors’ explanation in the Viability statement
of how they have assessed the prospects of the
Group, over what period they have done so and why
they considered that period to be appropriate, and
their statement as to whether they have a reasonable
expectation that the Group will be able to continue in
operation and meet its liabilities as they fall due over
the period of their assessment, including any related
disclosures drawing attention to any necessary
qualifications or assumptions.
We are also required to review the Viability Statement, set
out on page 49 under the Listing Rules.
Based on the above
procedures, we have concluded that the above disclosures
are materially consistent with the financial statements and
our audit knowledge.
Our work is limited to assessing these matters in the
context of only the knowledge acquired during our financial
statements audit.
As we cannot predict all future events
or conditions and as subsequent events may result in
outcomes that are inconsistent with judgements that were
reasonable at the time they were made, the absence of
anything to report on these statements is not a guarantee
as to the Group’s and Company’s longer-term viability.