Major companies could be exempt from joint audit rules in competition watchdog report April 14, 2019 The UK’s competition watchdog reportedly could exclude some major companies from a new rule that would require many business to appoint joint auditors. Sky News reported that the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is set to publish its long awaited report into the audit sector this week. According to the report, the CMA has been [...]
Amey ‘makes fresh £300m bid’ for freedom from Birmingham roadworks contract April 14, 2019 Outsourcer Amey has offered £300m to Birmingham city council in a bid to free itself from a 25-year contract to repair roads in the city, according to reports. Read more: FRC investigates Grant Thornton audits of Interserve The struggling UK company has been trying to buy its way out of the troublesome contract for months, after [...]
FCA to investigate Wasps rugby club over financial statements April 12, 2019 Wasps Rugby Club is reportedly under investigation by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) over whether it misled the market about its financial position. Read more: City watchdog strengthens post-Brexit ties with Australian regulator The UK's financial regulator is looking into the Premiership side's financial results from 2017 after it was revealed that the club had [...]
Accounting watchdog to investigate audits of outsourcer Interserve’s financials by Grant Thornton April 11, 2019 Britain’s accounting watchdog has started investigating the audits of Interserve by Grant Thornton, weeks after the outsourcer collapsed into administration. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) said this morning it is looking into Interserve’s accounts in 2015, 2016 and 2017. Read more: Interserve begins its new life as a private company Last month, Interserve finally collapsed into [...]
MPs call for full breakup of audit’s Big Four in wake of scandals April 2, 2019 MPs have triggered a war of words in the City after calling for a radical breakup of accountancy’s Big Four firms. A highly-anticipated report by the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Beis) Committee, released today, said the audit and consultancy arms of Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC should be forcibly divided to drive up competition [...]
Institute of Directors concerned over future of UK corporate governance under new audit regulator March 21, 2019 The Institute of Directors has expressed concern over the future of corporate governance in the UK following the establishment of a new audit regulator. The influential business organisation said the proposed regulator that is set to replace the Financial Reporting Council (FRC), which is being abolished in the wake of a string of corporate scandals, [...]
Financial Reporting Council to be scrapped in shake-up of audit sector March 11, 2019 The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) will be scrapped and replaced with a new beefed-up watchdog following a review into the audit sector by Sir John Kingman, the government announced today. The new regulator will have stronger statutory powers, including the ability to make direct changes to accounts and powers to require rapid explanations from companies [...]
Financial Reporting Council extends probe into Carillion’s accounts February 26, 2019 Britain’s accounting watchdog will look even further into the past in its investigation of the audit of failed outsourcing giant Carillion. For the first time the Financial Reporting Council’s (FRC) probe will stretch to work done in 2013 – but a spokesperson declined to say why this was. Read more: KPMG boss confident in Carillion [...]
Audit watchdog ‘whitewashed’ my HBOS evidence, says whistleblower February 6, 2019 The UK audit watchdog has been accused of brushing-off a whistleblower who claimed HBOS had understated loan-loss provisions in its 2007 accounts. An MP described the handling of the case as “astounding”. Rob Kennedy, a former employee in the lender’s corporate division, was part of the team that worked directly to calculate the provision and [...]
Watchdog boss: Auditors ‘clearly responsible’ for detecting company fraud February 5, 2019 The head of the UK’s beleaguered accountancy watchdog said auditors are “clearly responsible” for finding fraud in companies. Stephen Haddrill, chief executive of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC), said accountants too often buy into a “mythology” that they will not find wrongdoing while checking companies’ accounts. “The auditor is clearly responsible for finding fraud in [...]