*/ /*–>*/ “Complacency” and “dereliction of duty” on the part of the Big Four audit firms contributed to the financial crisis, according to the findings of a U.K. parliamentary investigation into the audit market. The House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee, which has been investigating the profession for eight months, said audit standards in the […]
Neil Baker
Posted inEurope
Europe’s National Regulators to Lose Influence
*/ /*–>*/ Europe’s national financial regulators will see their powers curtailed as the European Union’s new supervisory bodies get up and running, Hector Sants, head of the U.K.’s Financial Services Authority (FSA) has warned. Commenting in the FSA’s latest annual report, Sants said it was “important to recognize the implications of the change”, which will […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
Britain Promises to Ease Narrative Reporting Rules
*/ /*–>*/ */ /*–>*/ The U.K. government has promised to “materially simplify” the country’s narrative disclosure requirements in an effort to cut the cost of complying with its financial reporting rules. The narrative reporting rules will be made “clearer and more focused.” U.K.-listed companies have been frequently criticized—including by corporate regulator the Financial Reporting Council (FRC)—for […]
Posted inAnti-Bribery
U.K. to Make Bribery Law Easier for Foreign Companies
*/ /*–>*/ The U.K. government is about to significantly weaken the impact of its tough new Bribery Act, especially as it affects foreign companies, if press reports based on leaks of draft guidance are accurate. The Act came into effect last year, but the start date of controversial provisions that would leave companies open to […]
Posted inEurope
Europe Needs Tougher Related-Party Rules
*/ /*–>*/ The European Commission should introduce new rules forcing companies to disclose more information about related-party transactions, according to a body that advises it on corporate governance issues. The European Corporate Governance Forum called for tougher guidelines on the size of transaction that a company must disclose to its shareholders and new rules on […]
Posted inAccounting & Auditing
Calls for More Auditor Skepticism Will Push Up Fees
*/ /*–>*/ U.K. regulatory efforts to make auditors more skeptical would lead to unnecessary compliance cost increases, a leading business lobby group has warned. In a raft of changes aimed at encouraging auditors to challenge corporate executives, audit watchdog the Financial Reporting Council has proposed replacing the current requirement for auditors to exercise an “enquiring […]
Posted inEurope
Court Scuppers Europe’s Single Patent Plan
*/ /*–>*/ The European Commission’s plans to create a unified patent litigation system were dealt a heavy blow today when the 27-member trading bloc’s senior court ruled the idea unlawful. The ruling comes with the Commission just days away from concluding a decades-long effort to reform its bureaucratic patent system. Currently, a business that wants […]
Posted inBoards & Shareholders
Smaller Boards Work Best
*/ /*–>*/ Companies are more likely to succeed if they have a relatively small board, a higher proportion of women directors, and a healthy number of non-executives, according to a study from law firm Eversheds. The firm analyzed the performance of nearly 250 of the top companies in Europe, the United States, and Asia Pacific […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
India Could Abandon Mandatory IFRS
*/ /*–>*/ India is in danger of missing its deadline to implement mandatory use of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) by April 1 and might even make their use optional. With the self-imposed deadline just weeks away, the country’s parliament has still not made required changes to its Companies Act or passed other legislation needed […]
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
U.K. Convicts First Company for Manslaughter
*/ /*–>*/ U.K. prosecutors have secured their first conviction under the country’s new offense of corporate manslaughter. Cotswold Geotechnical Holdings was fined £385,000 for the death of Alexander Wright, a geologist who was killed when a trench he was working in collapsed. The company was convicted under the new Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act […]