Have your say Why I have

Count your carbon

I read with interest November’s edition of PQ magazine because of its emphasis on climate change. The regulations, and the reasons why investors are interested in sustainability reporting, is a current issue that is examined by ACCA and is why I recently teamed up with the audit guru Ben Wilson to record a podcast on this area covering both the accounting and audit issues (find it at https:// tinyurl.com/twa98k5t)

As an online lecturer I always knew that my courses have a very small carbon footprint. My students don’t travel to study, I have no offices to heat and it’s all about pdf notes rather than printed manuals.

But I wanted you to know that last month’s PQ magazine was the catalyst that I needed to prompt me into action to get my business certified as carbon neutral by Carbon Neutral Britain, and to pay for 30 trees to be planted every month (see https:// carbonneutralbritain.org/) I can only hope that others in our industry will be similarly inspired to take similar action.

Tom Clendon, ACCA SBR online lecturer and podcaster. For more information go to www. tomclendon.co.uk

The Editor says: Thanks for your letter Tom, and well done for your efforts around sustainability. Anyone else doing the same? We’d love to share your stories!

Our star letter writer wins a fantastic ‘I love PQ’ mug!

Not so woke

I really liked the book you chose in November’s issue. Vivek Ramaswamy is saying something that it hard to disagree with in his book ‘Woke Inc – Inside the Social Justice Scam’. There are huge double standards being played out by the big corporations, using ‘woke’ capitalism to increase their profits. Take a look at what’s happening at COP26. Suddenly the huge polluters are jumping on the bandwagon claiming how green they are, while maximising the money they make from oil and mining. They call it ‘greenwashing’, and just like money laundering it has to stop. I really do believe accountants can play a big role in cleaning this whole area up. Proper action is needed and there needs to be proper stringent regulation. Amanda Perry, Sunderland The Editor says: Amanda, your prayers have been answered. The IFRC Foundation has just created the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), which will help provide clarity when it comes to corporate reporting on sustainability. We all saw how the big corporations jumped on Black Lives Matter, and I too am a bit cynical about the ulterior motives. Time for change

I agree with the Office of Tax Simplification, we need to change the end of the tax year. It was good to discover the history behind the change in your piece ‘Time to change the tax year?’, but I think we have to go for the calendar year. All I would say is that we wait until everything goes digital, then we can let the computer take the strain. Creating quarterly reporting would also help this process. James Ward, Bristol

PQ magazine’s Back to Basics video series has been a big hit with readers. Tom Clendon’s eightminute video on double entry bookkeeping has, for example, now been downloaded over 1,700 times! You can check it out at https://lnkd.in/dyNSqeg. Tom explains exactly when to debit and credit, and we think his video is vital if you are just starting out, but equally as important if you are looking for a refresher.

When we highlighted the series on LinkedIn and Facebook everyone loved the picture we used to go with the story, and wanted to know where they could get the baby grow! We went in search of it on Google by typing in ‘accountancy baby grows’, and wouldn’t advise anyone of doing the same! That is a word hole you may never escape from.

There are lots of other great short videos, on assets, trial balance and VAT calculations. Check out what is on offer at www.pqmagazine.com.

While you are there you can also click on our test bank series, where Professor Phil Dunn tests your knowledge on a diverse range of subjects that include the accounting standards, ABC and limiting factor analysis (to name but a few).

It was also Halloween recently, and ACCA tutor Ben Wilson showed how to put his homegrown allotment pumpkins to good use! Scary stuff indeed Ben. Let’s hope he turned them all into pumpkin pie shortly after!

PQ Magazine PO Box 75983, London E11 9GS | Phone: 07765 386489 | Email: graham@pqmagazine.com Website: www.pqmagazine.com | Editor/publisher: Graham Hambly graham@pqmagazine.com | Associate editor: Adam Riches | Art editor: Tim Parker Contributors: Robert Bruce, Prem Sikka, Lisa Nelson, Anna Kate Phelan, Tony Kelly, Phil Gammon, Edward Netherton | Subscriptions: subscriptions@pqmagazine.com | Origination services by Classified Central Media If you have any problems with delivery, or if you want to change your delivery address, please email admin@pqmagazine.com Published by PQ Publishing Ltd © PQ Publishing 2021