AstraZeneca Annual Report and Form 20-F Information 2011

Financial StatementsPreparation of the Financial Statements and Directors’ ResponsibilitiesThe Directors are responsible for preparing the Annual Report andForm 20-F Information and the Group and Parent Company FinancialStatements in accordance with applicable law and regulations.Company law requires the Directors to prepare Group and ParentCompany Financial Statements for each financial year. Under thatlaw they are required to prepare the Group Financial Statements inaccordance with IFRSs as adopted by the EU and applicable law andhave elected to prepare the Parent Company Financial Statementsin accordance with UK Accounting Standards and applicable law(UK Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).Under company law the Directors must not approve the financialstatements unless they are satisfied that they give a true and fair viewof the state of affairs of the Group and Parent Company and of theirprofit or loss for that period. In preparing each of the Group andParent Company Financial Statements, the Directors are required to:> > Select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently.> > Make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent.> > For the Group Financial Statements, state whether they have beenprepared in accordance with IFRSs as adopted by the EU.> > For the Parent Company Financial Statements, state whetherapplicable UK Accounting Standards have been followed, subjectto any material departures disclosed and explained in the ParentCompany Financial Statements.> > Prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unlessit is inappropriate to presume that the Group and the ParentCompany will continue in business.The Directors are responsible for keeping adequate accountingrecords that are sufficient to show and explain the Parent Company’stransactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time thefinancial position of the Parent Company and enable them to ensurethat its financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006.They have general responsibility for taking such steps as are reasonablyopen to them to safeguard the assets of the Group and to prevent anddetect fraud and other irregularities.Under applicable law and regulations, the Directors are also responsiblefor preparing a Directors’ Report, Directors’ Remuneration Report andCorporate Governance Statement that complies with that law andthose regulations.The Directors are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of thecorporate and financial information included on the Company’s website.Legislation in the UK governing the preparation and dissemination offinancial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.Directors’ responsibility statement pursuant to DTR 4The Directors confirm that to the best of our knowledge:> > The Financial Statements, prepared in accordance with the applicableset of accounting standards, give a true and fair view of the assets,liabilities, financial position and profit or loss of the Company andthe undertakings included in the consolidation taken as a whole.> > The Directors’ Report includes a fair review of the developmentand performance of the business and the position of the issuer andthe undertakings included in the consolidation taken as a whole,together with a description of the principal risks and uncertaintiesthat they face.On behalf of the Board of Directors on 2 February 2012David R BrennanDirectorDirectors’ Responsibilities for, and Report on,Internal Control over Financial ReportingThe Directors are responsible for establishing and maintainingadequate internal control over financial reporting. AstraZeneca’sinternal control over financial reporting is designed to provide reasonableassurance over the reliability of financial reporting and the preparationof consolidated financial statements in accordance with generallyaccepted accounting principles.Due to its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reportingmay not prevent or detect misstatements. Projections of any evaluationof effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risks that controlsmay become inadequate because of changes in conditions or that thedegree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.The Directors assessed the effectiveness of AstraZeneca’s internalcontrol over financial reporting as at 31 December 2011 based onthe criteria set forth by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizationsof the Treadway Commission in Internal Control-Integrated Framework.Based on this assessment, the Directors believe that, as at 31 December2011, the internal control over financial reporting is effective based onthose criteria.KPMG Audit Plc, an independent registered public accounting firm, hasaudited the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting asat 31 December 2011 and, as explained on page 141, has issued anunqualified report thereon.140 Financial StatementsAstraZeneca Annual Report and Form 20-F Information 2011