U.K. government scraps long-awaited audit reforms to prioritize growth

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.

U.K. audit reform has been promised since the collapse of public sector contractor Carillion eight years ago. The company had billions of pounds of debt, had overextended its operations, and had serious management failings, yet its auditors failed to raise concerns. KPMG was fined £21 million in 2023 for “seriously deficient” Carillion audit work.