The Auditor General for Wales has written to all local government bodies raising concerns about increasing delays in the preparation and auditing of statutory accounts.
Just over half of local government bodies — including unitary councils, fire, police and national park authorities — met the 2025 deadline, a further deterioration on previous years.
Auditor General Adrian Crompton warned the trend poses risks to financial transparency and public governance.
He said the situation requires ‘urgent collective action,’ noting that England's experience has shown how prolonged backlogs can contribute to deeper financial problems.
The letters sent to councils set out a range of actions needed to address the issue, including realistic recovery plans, high-quality working papers submitted on time, sufficient capacity within finance teams, and investment in modern finance systems.
‘Prolonged backlogs create risks for governance, reduce financial transparency, increase audit costs and make it harder for councils to plan effectively,’ Crompton added.
‘It’s essential that the local government sector responds to the issues in my letter if we are to avoid the serious financial challenges seen elsewhere.’
