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	The Pharmaceutical Journal Vol 270 No 7253 p828-829 14 June 2003	This page Reprint Photocopy
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The Society

Own goal on accounts

From Mr A. K. Mehta, MRPharmS

Your leader of 24 May (p708) is quite right to describe as an own goal the decision by the President and the Secretary and Registrar not to allow members a vote on the Royal Pharmaceutical Society's accounts at the recent annual general meeting.

It is all the more an own goal because, amid the concerns raised by members about the accounts at the AGM in 2002, I was asked during the meeting if I would assist the Council in improving the quality of the accounts. I replied that I would be happy to do so if there was a real intent on the part of the Officers of the Society to improve the accounts. Immediately after the meeting I was approached by the finance director of the Society with the same request.

I assume the fact that I have not been contacted subsequently means that the intent was not really there after all. The Officers of the Society could have chosen to improve the accuracy, clarity and disclosure of the accounts; there are still many matters in the accounts which, in my opinion, warrant greater disclosure to members. Instead they have chosen to issue accounts that do not allow members a full understanding of the Society's activities and existing risks, and as you rightly point out they have compounded this error by not allowing members to vote.

In the midst of a debate about modernising the Society and improving its governance, this was a peculiar and untimely decision.

Ash Mehta
Richmond, Surrey

HUGH MITCHELL, director of finance and resources, Royal Pharmaceutical Society, comments:

Mr Mehta was present at the 2002 annual general meeting and raised a number of questions on the 2001 financial statements, which were, I believe, comprehensively answered in my article in The Pharmaceutical Journal of 25 May 2002 (p745) entitled "Is the devil really in the detail?"

During the 2002 AGM, Mr Mehta made a critical assertion that an important disclosure had not been made which was, in fact, an erroneous statement on his behalf. Since the financial reporting standard he referred to, FRS13, was not available on the night, his statement could not be challenged and this led to significant confusion and misled the meeting.

The Society's financial statements are well presented and the quality of explanatory information has been significantly improved during the past two years, particularly within the "Annual review". The financial results are also published on the website in good time to allow constructive questions at the AGM.

The Honorary Auditors have complimented the finance team on the quality and transparency of the information supplied to them and also that contained in the financial statements and the "Annual review".

The Society has, as well as the Honorary Auditors, significant governance in place to ensure that members' interests are well served in the areas of accuracy, clarity and disclosure. It has made a significant investment in the areas of financial audit, has an active resource management committee and active audit committee overseeing financial and operational control procedures. This investment should give full comfort to the membership that all financial matters are well controlled and that risks are recognised and managed.

The 2002 financial results enabled a significant strengthening of the balance sheet and this was recognised by the members who attended the AGM on 14 May 2003.

In 2002, I agreed that any suggestions for improvements to the information presented would be considered. No suggestions were received, except from the Honorary Auditors.

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