Directors' Responsibility Statements

STATEMENT OF DIRECTORS’ RESPONSIBILITIES IN RESPECT OF THE GROUP AND COMPANY FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

The Directors are responsible for preparing the Annual Report, the Directors’ Remuneration Report and the Group and Company financial statements in accordance with applicable law and regulations.

Company law requires the Directors to prepare financial statements for each financial year. Under that law, the Directors have prepared the Group financial statements in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) as adopted by the European Union and the Parent Company financial statements in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice (United Kingdom Accounting Standards and applicable law). Under company law, the Directors must not approve the financial statements unless they are satisfied that they give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Group and the Company and of the profit or loss of the Group for that period.

In preparing the Group financial statements, the Directors are required to:

• select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
• present information, including accounting policies, in a manner that provides relevant, reliable, comparable and understandable information;
• make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
• state whether IFRSs as adopted by the European Union and applicable UK Accounting Standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the Group and Parent Company financial statements respectively; and
• prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Group will continue in business.

The Directors are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Company and the Group and to enable them to ensure that the financial statements and the Directors’ Remuneration Report comply with the Companies Act 2006 and, as regards the Group financial statements, Article 4 of the IAS Regulations. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Company and the Group and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

The Directors are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the Company’s website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.

RESPONSIBILITY STATEMENTS UNDER THE DISCLOSURE AND TRANSPARENCY RULES

Each of the current Directors confirms that, to the best of his knowledge:

• the Group financial statements, prepared in accordance with IFRSs as adopted by the European Union, give a true and fair view of the assets, liabilities, financial position and profit of the Company and the undertakings included in the consolidation taken as a whole; and
• the Strategic Review on pages 6 to 29 includes a fair review of the development and performance of the business and the position of the Company and the undertakings included in the consolidation taken as a whole, together with a description of the principal risks and uncertainties that it faces.

In addition, having taken all the matters considered by the Board and brought to the attention of the Board during the year into account, the Directors are satisfied that the annual report and accounts, taken as a whole, is fair, balanced and understandable and provides the information necessary for shareholders to assess the Company’s performance, business model and strategy.

For and on behalf of the Board

Alun Jones
Chairman
18 February 2015