OPINION 4. We have audited: (a) the accounts of the Authority which comprise the financial statements (5) and the reports on the implementation of the budget (6) for the financial year ended 31 December 2016; and (b) the legality and regularity of the transactions underlying those accounts; as required by Article 287 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). Reliability of the accounts Opinion on the reliability of the accounts 5. In our opinion, the accounts of the Authority for the year ended 31 December 2016 present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Authority at 31 December 2016, the results of its operations, its cash flows, and the changes in net assets for the year then ended, in accordance with its Financial Regulation and with accounting rules adopted by the Commission’s accounting officer. These are based on internationally accepted accounting standards for the public sector. Legality and regularity of the transactions underlying the accounts Revenue Opinion on the legality and regularity of revenue underlying the accounts 6. In our opinion, revenue underlying the accounts for the year ended 31 December 2016 is legal and regular in all material respects. Payments Opinion on the legality and regularity of payments underlying the accounts 7. In our opinion, payments underlying the accounts for the year ended 31 December 2016 are legal and regular in all material respects. Responsibilities of management and those charged with governance 8. In accordance with Articles 310 to 325 of the TFEU and the Authority’s Financial Regulation, management is responsible for the preparation and presentation of the accounts on the basis of internationally accepted accounting standards for the public sector and for the legality and regularity of the transactions underlying them. This responsibility includes the design, implementation and maintenance of internal controls relevant to the preparation and presentation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error. Management is also responsible for ensuring that the activities, financial transactions and information reflected in the financial statements are in compliance with the authorities which govern them. The Authority’s management bears the ultimate responsibility for the legality and regularity of the transactions underlying the accounts. 9. In preparing the accounts, management is responsible for assessing the Authority’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting. 10. Those charged with governance are responsible for overseeing the entity’s financial reporting process. Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the accounts and underlying transactions 11. Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the accounts of the Authority are free from material misstatement and the transactions underlying them are legal and regular and to provide, on the basis of our audit, the European Parliament and the Council or other respective discharge authorities with a statement of assurance as to the reliability of the accounts and the legality and regularity of the transactions underlying them. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit will always detect a material misstatement or non-compliance when it exists. These can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these accounts. 12. An audit involves performing procedures to obtain audit evidence about the amounts and disclosures in the accounts and the legality and the regularity of the transactions underlying them. The procedures selected depend on the auditor’s judgment, including an assessment of the risks of material misstatement of the accounts and of material non-compliance of the underlying transactions with the requirements of the legal framework of the European Union, whether due to fraud or error. In making those risk assessments, internal controls relevant to the preparation and fair presentation of the accounts and legality and regularity of underlying transactions, are considered in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of internal controls. An audit also includes evaluating the appropriateness of accounting policies used and the reasonableness of accounting estimates made by the management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the accounts. 13. For revenue, we verify the subsidy received from the Commission and assess the Authority’s procedures for collecting fees and other income, if any. 14. For expenditure, we examine payment transactions when expenditure has been incurred, recorded and accepted. Advance payments are examined when the recipient of funds provides justification for their proper use and the Authority accepts the justification by clearing the advance payment, whether in the same year or later. 15. In preparing this report and Statement of Assurance, we considered the audit work of the independent external auditor performed on the Authority’s accounts as stipulated in Article 208(4) of the EU Financial Regulation (7). Other matter 16. Without calling into question its opinion, the Court draws attention to the fact that the United Kingdom (UK) notified the European Council on 29 March 2017 of its decision to withdraw from the European Union. An agreement setting out the arrangements for its withdrawal will be negotiated. The Authority’s budget is financed by 26 % from European Union funds, by 47 % through direct contributions from EU Member States and by 27 % from and fees received from supervised entities (credit-rating agencies and trade repositories). The departure of the UK might affect the Authority’s activities since the most significant supervised entities are currently located there. A future decrease of the Authority’s revenue resulting from the UK’s decision to leave the EU is possible.