Note 20: Explanation of major variances against budget

Explanations for major variances from the Office's forecast figures in our Annual Plan 2012/13 are as follows:

Statement of comprehensive income

Audit fee revenue was higher than forecast due to additional audit work completed.

Personnel costs were higher than forecast, mainly due to additional costs of employing contract staff to resource audit work.

Operating costs were lower than forecast, as professional services and professional development costs were lower than originally budgeted.

Depreciation and amortisation expense was lower than forecast, mainly because capital expenditure was incurred later than expected.

Statement of financial position

Current assets were higher than forecast, which was mainly due to a higher cash balance arising from the operating surplus for the year. Work in progress was higher than forecast due to the timing of audit fee invoicing.

Non-current assets were lower than forecast, as the actual costs of the Office's Wellington fitout and the new document management system were lower than originally forecast.

Current liabilities were higher than forecast, which was mainly attributable to the provision for repayment of surplus to the Crown.