to rely on internal audit , the internal audit must be objective does this mean it should report to audit committee rather than those responsible for designing the system? independent
An internal audit function cannot be as objective as external audit because it is made up of employees and cannot therefore be “independent” of the entity. That said, for the function to be as objective as possible it should have access to the “highest level” of the organisation – as you say, the audit committee (where there is one).