The internal audit function is undertaken by the Group financial accounting team as part of its other functions. Given the current structure of the Group, the Board and the Audit Committee consider that a separate internal audit function is not required presently.The Board recognises that control risks increase during the integration of newly acquired businesses and during this period monitors closely the status of the systems and commercial integration.

Compliance, Litigation and Insurance
It is important RPS complies with prevailing legislation and with the terms of its contracts with clients, staff and suppliers. In order to ensure this the Group has in place a series of quality management systems.

In certain parts of its business RPS maintains and implements documented Quality Management Systems which satisfy, as a minimum, the requirements of ISO 9001:2000, through the:

• documenting of procedures to control the quality of services;
• maintaining records to control and show compliance with quality and client requirements;
• recording the implementation of corrective measures necessary to ensure the quality of service provided;
• taking appropriate preventative measures to improve quality and minimise the possibility of unsatisfactory service; and
• monitoring of the quality management system in operation at each office at regular intervals in order to ensure its continuing and improving effectiveness.

Formal certification to ISO 9001:2000 standard is a required procedure for some aspects of RPS’ business; therefore a number of RPS’ offices in the UK, Ireland and the Netherlands are certified to ISO
9001. Offices in North America and Australia have quality systems that are based on formal procedures that have

been developed in line with ISO 9001 guidelines.

Our business depends largely on our ability to attract and retain talented employees.The market for highly skilled individuals in our business sector is extremely competitive.

Those RPS offices providing environmental monitoring and analytical services hold external accreditations from additional quality assurance schemes. Quality accreditations held by individual RPS offices include those externally audited by UKAS, Aquacheck, RICE, UK NEQAS and the UK Health and Safety Executive’sWASP scheme.

In Ireland our offices are quality accredited through the NSAI (National Standards Authority of Ireland) and SGS and for Safety Management through the NISO (National Irish Safety Organisation).

However, even when these systems work well issues can arise which may give