Long-awaited reforms to the U.K. audit regime have been “scrapped” from the government’s legislative plans. The decision has led to an outburst of disappointment and frustration from audit bodies and pension funds that argued the reforms would increase trust in companies and support growth.

Ruth Prickett graduated from Cambridge University with a BA hons in History and has specialized in business and finance journalism for the past 20 years. She was editor of Financial Management, the magazine...