Despite an inquiry that has been conducted and several recommendations being made by the parliamentary committee regarding the audit regulation wrapped in 2020, the Australian government still has not responded, which has caused an unimpressed reaction from the Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CAANZ).
CAANZ demands response
Since August 2023, a demand has been made by the professional body of chartered accountants to close the inquiry concerning issues of audit independence, audit quality and the supervision of audits by regulators.
The Charted Accountants of Australia and New Zealand (CAANZ) stated, “Auditors play a critical role in maintaining confidence and trust in our businesses, capital markets and public institutions,”. CAANZ further asks the federal government again to act on the ten recommendations from the inquiry into the regulation of auditing in Australia.
“That inquiry, which started in 2019, looked deeply at audits in Australia, received more than 100 submissions, held several days of hearings and a plethora of other evidence.” CAANZ further stated.
At a time when two federal parliamentary committees are investigating facets of the accounting profession, CAANZ is urging the government to complete a response to an inquiry that began over four years ago.
Concerns over PwC’s breach of confidentially in a Treasury tax policy consulting came open, prompting the senate’s finance and public administration probe into the integrity of consulting firms.
The 3 government Inquiries
The conducted inquiry, which was chaired by coalition senator Richard Colbeck was centred around the procurement processes conducted by the Australian government. The deadline for the report is to be this November. Set expectations were that additional hearings are to be conducted by the committee to explore and understand the strict regulations that were implemented to govern groups that provide services to the Australian government.
In contrast, another inquiry is to be pursued by the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services, which is keen on looking at several ethics and professional accountability in the accounting sector.
Another joint committee is to be led by Labor Party senator Deborah O’Neill; the goal of the inquiry is to explore all aspects of challenges in the structures of firms involved in providing services.
In conclusion, since August of 2023, the Charted Accountants of Australia and New Zealand (CAANZ) have demanded the closure of further inquiries and urged the Australian government to follow ten recommendations. Said inquiries were conducted to analyse several concerning aspects and actions within the government. Although said inquiries were conducted on the year 2019, the government still has not released any responses to the inquiry leading to an unimpressed reaction from the CAANZ.