We challenged the Department on whether its plans to bring the accounts publication deadline forward for 2022–23 would present a risk to progress. The Department told us it would keep this under review.20 However, local audit providers and local authorities shared with us their concerns that the anticipated return to a May deadline for the production of draft accounts, despite auditors being clear they are unlikely to be ready to start work at that point, will create increased pressure on authorities.21 Ominously the FRC highlighted wider system risks of auditors having to clear local audit backlogs at the same time as delivering their NHS audit work, making it ‘far from certain’ that audit timeliness would be back on track within a reasonable period.22 Impacts of local audit delays