D.5 Policy on Internal Auditor Independence and Objectivity

  1. PRIA is specifically prohibited from engaging in any activity that could compromise, or give the perception of compromising, the independence of the Practice Review and Internal Audit and the objectivity of its directors performing internal audits.

  2. If independence or objectivity is impaired in fact or appearance, the details of the impairment must be disclosed to appropriate parties. The nature of the disclosure will depend upon the impairment.

  3. PRIA’s directors who perform internal audits, although constantly seeking the input and opinions of various executive and audit clients, take their direction solely from the Chief Audit Executive (CAE) and the Audit Committee.

  4. PRIA’s directors who perform internal audits are prohibited from performing audits of any area or activity where they have worked or for which they have been principally responsible within the previous year.

  5. Assurance engagements for functions over which the Chief Audit Executive has responsibility must be overseen by a party outside the internal audit activity.

  6. Where the Chief Audit Executive has or is expected to have roles and/or responsibilities that fall outside of internal auditing, safeguards must be in place to limit impairments to independence or objectivity.

  7. PRIA may provide assurance services where it had previously performed consulting services, provided the nature of the consulting did not impair objectivity and provided individual objectivity is managed when assigning resources to the engagement.

  8. PRIA’s directors may provide consulting services relating to operations for which they had previous responsibilities.

  9. If PRIA’s internal auditors have potential impairments to independence or objectivity relating to proposed assurance or consulting services, disclosure must be made to the Chief Audit Executive and the engagement client prior to accepting the engagement.

  10. While PRIA may be consulted or provide limited assistance/support on or to projects or certain business operations, they are prohibited from making or approving operating decisions, designing or approving internal controls, or supervising or approving business transactions.

  11. Requests for consulting or other assistance are to be reviewed and approved by the CAE prior to engagement/execution.

  12. The CAE must discuss any deviations from this policy with the Audit Committee.

Last modified:
2018-03-01