New CIMA president elected

In another first for CIMA, Sarah Ghosh becomes the second successive women to become President and Co-chair of the Association, following on from Melanie J Kanaka. Ghosh became a CIMA member in 1995 and fellow in 2013. She current works for the UK Civil Service, with a focus on sustainability and technology. Earlier this year Ghosh was named among the 2023 Top 50 Women in

Which June 2023 ACCA exam was the hardest?

So, which ACCA exam was the hardest this June? The answer is clearly SBR, according to the Open Tuition Instant Poll! Other papers on the naughty list were APM, FM and PM.

The next PQ magazine will have top exam tips for the September sitting. Read our feature on SBL changes on page 27

Labour taking staff from Big 4 again

The Labour Party has been criticised for using more than £230,000 worth of free staff from the Big 4 firms PwC and EY since Keir Starmer took over the leadership in 2020.

The story from openDemocracy points out that Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves recommended the accounting giants be broken up and a new independent regulator be established. openDemocracy said: “The government notionally accepted the suggestions but neither was acted on.” In the past Labour has used PwC extensively, but the tie was broken in 2015 after the chair of the Public Accounts Committee, Margaret Hodge, said the firm had been “selling tax avoidance on an industrial scale”.

Large firms continue to ‘improve’ audit quality

The FRC has published its annual inspection and supervision results of the largest audit firms (BDO, Deloitte, EY, Grant Thornton, KPMG, Mazars and PwC).

Overall, 77% of audits inspected were deemed good or required limited improvement. This, says the FRC, reflects a year-on-year improvement spanning four years, with a 10 percentage points increase compared with the

Accounting.

She said: “I will be using my term to promote sustainability, innovation, and inclusion within the profession. I firmly believe that now is the time to seize the future and make progress in these areas. By doing so, we will make a real difference today, and secure a brighter future for ourselves, for those who count on us and those that follow us.”

67% recorded in 2020.That still leaves nearly one in four (23%) of inspected audits that require significant improvement.

Sanctions for PwC and KPMG

PwC has been fined just under £2m by the FRC and received a severe reprimand for its audit of Eddie Stobart plc for the financial year ended 30 November 2018. Audit engaged partner Philip Storer was fined £51,000 and received a severe reprimand.

KPMG has also been sanctioned for its earlier audit (for the financial year ended 30 November 2017) of the same company. KPMG was fined £877,500, with the Big 4 firm’s poor disciplinary record noted as an aggravating factor.