Welcome to this week’s Technical Roundup.
In developments this week, The G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors met in Venice on 9-10 July 2021. Their final communiqué has been issued which also comments on sustainability reporting; the Companies (Rescue Process for Small and Micro Companies) Bill 2021 was passed through all legislative stages in the Oireachtas; and published; the Government announced its Summer Economic Statement.
Read more on these and other developments that may be of interest to members below.
Financial Reporting
The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) in conjunction with the European Accounting Association (EAA) and European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) held a virtual research workshop on 1 July 2021 that provided an overview of the IASB’s exposure draft (ED) ‘Disclosure Requirements in IFRS Standards — A Pilot Approach’. A recording of this workshop is now available.
The European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) project task force on reporting of non-financial risks and opportunities and linkage to the business model held a webinar where it introduced key findings in its draft report. EFRAG has now published a summary report and a video from the event.
Audit
The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has today issued revised quality management standards for an audit firm’s responsibilities to design, implement and operate a system of quality management: International Standard on Quality Management (UK) 1 Quality Management For Firms That Perform Audits Or Reviews Of Financial Statements, Or Other Assurance Or Related Services Engagements, International Standard on Quality Management (UK) 2 Engagement Quality Reviews, and International Standard on Auditing (UK) 220 (Revised July 2021) Quality Control For An Audit Of Financial Statements.
The IAASB in collaboration with IFAC will host two quality management webinars, Resourcing for Quality Management on July 29 from 11 am–12 pm GMT and Your Firm’s Monitoring & Remediation Process on August 5 from 11 am–12 pm GMT.
Sustainability
The G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors met in Venice on 9-10 July 2021. Their final communiqué has been issued which also comments on sustainability reporting.
Working towards international sustainability reporting convergence, EFRAG Project Task Force on European sustainability reporting standards (PTF-ESRS) and GRI recently signed a landmark Statement of Cooperation.
A4S/ABN
Were you aware that there are currently 614 sustainability reporting requirements across 84 countries and 25 Exchanges (covering 16,456 companies) require ESG reporting as a listing rule? Organizations are therefore relying on the knowledge, skills and processes of finance professionals, including the crucial role of the accountant, to get ahead of corporate reporting trends.
Accounting for Sustainability (A4S) and its Accounting Bodies Network (ABN) have just published a new guide on sustainability reporting. This guide offers a brief introduction to the changing corporate reporting landscape. It summarises recent key developments in sustainability reporting. It shows how it is impacting the role of the accountant and shaping the future of corporate reporting. It also highlights how this area is likely to evolve going forward, offering signposting to further sources of information.
The Institute is proud to have contributed towards this work and we hope you find it useful in navigating the future of accountancy.
Anti-Money Laundering
Accountancy Europe’s online blog this week Money laundering is a real issue: are we doing enough to fight it? discusses how Money Laundering impacts on our society and economy and whether AML legislation is doing enough.
Other areas of interest
The Minister for Trade Promotion, Digital and Company Regulation, Robert Troy TD, welcomed the passing of the Companies (Rescue Process for Small and Micro Companies) Bill 2021 through all legislative stages in the Oireachtas. The Bill will now be sent to Office of the President for signature and enactment into law. The Bill amends the Companies Act 2014 to provide for a new dedicated rescue process for small and micro companies, the Small Company Administrative Rescue Process (SCARP). The administrative rescue process mirrors key provisions of the existing examinership process including the repudiation of onerous contracts, cross-class cram down of debts, and encourages ongoing creditor engagement.
The Central Bank of Ireland has this week published a series of findings and expectations from its industry-wide review of compliance with the Market Abuse Regulation (MAR). This review examined how regulated firms, issuers, and advisors who act on behalf of issuers are meeting their obligations to ensure organisational arrangements are effective in mitigating the risk of market abuse and ensuring market transparency.
The Minister for Finance, Paschal Donohoe T.D., and the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Michael McGrath T.D., published the Government’s Summer Economic Statement. This document sets out the Government’s medium-term budgetary strategy and outlines the fiscal parameters within which discussions will take place ahead of Budget 2022. Read the full press release here.
The FRC in partnership with London Business School Leadership Institute and SQW will host a webinar on July 21st, from 2pm-3pm, to launch the ‘Board Diversity and Effectiveness in FTSE 350 Companies’ research report.
The Department of Trade, Enterprise and Employment has issued its July newsletter which includes details of the relevant open public consultations and it also provides guidance on remote working.
The Companies Registration Office has issued its Annual Report for 2020. There are many interesting statistics contained in the report including the fact that there were in excess of 250,000 companies registered in Ireland at the end of last year and almost 22,000 companies were incorporated in 2020.
For further technical information and updates please visit the Technical Hub and the Covid-19 Hub on the Institute website.
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