RSS feedsDespite not being public companies, accountancy firms issue public reports that provide mostly excellent disclosures about what is going on, how much profit they make, and from which service lines.
The problem now is that, as far as the UK is concerned, that information looks set to become drastically worse.
While nobody would question KPMG and E&Y’s decisions to form closer unions with fellow firms in their networks on reporting grounds, it looks like the UK profession will in future find out less and less about what the two firms are doing in the UK.
Both have suggested they will publish merged numbers, and have made no other pledges on their UK reporting.
In accordance with LLP rules, KPMG and E&Y will still report their UK
results to Companies House. But there
will be a long time lapse between the firm’s year end
and the public disclosure of those numbers, and the information is likely to
be less wide ranging.
Does it matter? Well, there are good reasons why there is a public interest in
the information. Auditors perform a public function, and the public should know
what is going on.
Perhaps we should be grateful if the firms were still partnerships, we would get nothing. The FRC’s Murray committee is looking at what it can do to improve governance at audit firms. Some have questioned its relevance, but this could be something worth it looking at.
Better still, for firms and companies generally, why not go the whole hog, and get the IASB to introduce country-by-country reporting?
Alex Hawkes is the news editor of Accountancy Age
