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Finance | Audit firms and client relationships in conflict

Tight audit fees coupled with alternative revenue streams is causing conflicts of interest at the Big Four audit firms, but what is the future for audit, asks Calum Fuller, assistant editor of Accountancy

7 Sep 2016

Corporate Governance

Accountancy Firms

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Tax | Ingenious case: a Pyrrhic victory?

The decision in the Ingenious partnerships tax case highlights risks around leveraged loan-based investments, says Tessa Lorimer, special counsel, tax investigations team, Withers

7 Sep 2016

Law and Regulation

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Finance | Chinese chemical group blows £20m hole in its six-month accounts

Haike Chemical Group, a speciality chemicals company based in China and listed on the London Stock Exchange, has revealed a CNY 176.2m (£19.8m) accounting error in its reported revenue for the first six months of 2016, after an ‘administrative oversight’ meant it wrongly included revenues from two business which it had sold off a year before

7 Sep 2016

Financial Reporting

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| KPMG faces disciplinary tribunal over Equity Red Star audit

KPMG and two of its audit partners who are ICAEW members, plus a CIMA member, are to face a disciplinary tribunal over their handling of the audit of Lloyd’s Syndicate 218 (Equity Red Star), a specialist motor insurer, following an investigation by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC)

7 Sep 2016

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Tax | Worldwide Disclosure Facility ‘last chance’ for offshore taxpayers

Terms offered to taxpayers via the Worldwide Disclosure Facility, launched on 5 September, may not be attractive enough to incentivise large numbers to come forward, warns law firm Pinsent Masons

7 Sep 2016

International Tax

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Business | Deloitte reclaims top network place after near 10% global growth

Deloitte has reported a 9.5% increase in its aggregate network revenue as it took $36.8bn (£27.6bn) worldwide for the fiscal year ended 31 May 2016

7 Sep 2016

Accountancy Firms

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Tax | Troup to set out revised approach to big business tax assurance by October

HMRC plans to release details of new tax assurance arrangements and performance targets for the department later this month, according to presentations at its annual stakeholder conference earlier this week

7 Sep 2016

Accountancy Firms

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Tax | Multinationals to publish country-by-country reporting tax data

Labour MP Caroline Flint, a member of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), has been successful in introducing an amendment to the Finance Bill which would require multinationals to make public their country by country reporting (CBCR) for the first time

7 Sep 2016

International Tax

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Business | Survey shows FTSE 100 pay under shareholder fire

Executive pay packages in the FTSE 100 are coming under increasing criticism from shareholders according to preliminary findings of a survey by Deloitte, which found the proportion of companies receiving less than 75% of votes in support of their remuneration has almost doubled since the ‘shareholder spring’ of 2012

7 Sep 2016

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Tax | Face-to-face sessions on Making Tax Digital scheduled

HMRC is running a schedule of face-to-face events across the UK in September and October of this year to encourage people to respond to the Making Tax Digital (MTD) consultations

7 Sep 2016

Making Tax Digital

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Business | Consulting: growth of the Big Four giants

The Big Four accounting firms are grabbing increasing marketshare from traditional consulting firms while acquisitions are strengthening their product offering. Fiona Czerniawska, director of Source Global Research, discusses what is driving their growth

7 Sep 2016

Accountancy Firms

6 Sep 2016

Image for kavanagh tax settlement warning de silva case looms

Tax | Kavanagh: tax settlement warning as De Silva case looms

Tax settlements with HMRC may not yield the best results for taxpayers in dispute, warns John Kavanagh, senior counsel at Taxxa, as the potentially decisive De Silva case approaches the Supreme Court in 2017

6 Sep 2016

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Tax | Minister confirms Making Tax Digital delayed until 2019 for some businesses

Jane Ellison, finance secretary to the Treasury, has confirmed that the introduction of Making Tax Digital (MTD) for the majority of businesses will be delayed to 2019 to allow them more time to prepare, an announcement first referenced in the swathe of consultation documents released on 15 August

6 Sep 2016

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Finance | Pension funds group slams FRC dividends advice as ‘defective’

The Local Authority Pension Fund Forum (LAPFF) has ramped up its long running disagreement with the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) over what constitutes ‘true and fair’ by writing to FTSE 350 boards urging them to ‘disregard’ the regulator’s advice, which the forum claims runs contrary to the government’s own view

6 Sep 2016

Accounting Standards

Financial Reporting

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Tax | NAO launches investigation into HMRC’s tax collection from HNWI

The National Audit Office (NAO) plans to investigate HMRC’s approach to collecting tax from high net worth individuals (HNWI), due for publication this winter

6 Sep 2016

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| Leonard Curtis sets up legal services division

Mid-tier firm Leonard Curtis has confirmed its newly-established legal services division, which it will run from Manchester headed by its head of business restructuring Andrew Gregory

6 Sep 2016

Leadership & Management

Image for hmrc delays rules vat treatment pension scheme administration services

Tax | HMRC delays rules on VAT treatment of pension scheme administration services

HMRC has announced it is to extend by 12 months the transitional period for new rules on an employer’s entitlement to deduct VAT paid on services relating to the administration of defined benefit pension schemes and the management of their assets, which will now end on 31 December 2017

6 Sep 2016

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Business | ICSA calls for changes on corporate governance of private companies

Following the collapse of BHS, the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ICSA) has written to Prime Minister, Theresa May, suggesting what can be done to reform governance at private companies

6 Sep 2016

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Tax | HMRC updates guidance on employee benefit trust settlements

Following the closure of the HMRC settlement period for for employee benefit trust settlement opportunity (EBTSO) last year, the tax authority has set out revised guidance outlining how income tax will be offset for non-disclosed years

6 Sep 2016

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Tax | Obama warns G20 of risk of tax ‘race to the bottom’

The G20 summit in China has stressed the need for international tax cooperation to achieve ‘a globally fair and modern international tax system’, after US President Obama warned of the risks if countries ‘race to the bottom’ in tax policies

6 Sep 2016

International Tax

5 Sep 2016

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Business | Public sector consulting hits £1.1bn as accounting firms benefit

Spending on consultants in the public sector is estimated to be worth around £1.1bn a year and the Big Four accounting firms are increasing their market share across the board from advisory services on corporate finance and procurement to multi-specialism programmes, reports Philip Smith

5 Sep 2016

Accountancy Firms

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Tax | Icebreaker 2 appeal thrown out by Upper Tribunal

The lead appeal in Icebreaker 2 partnerships has been dismissed by the Upper Tribunal after it was ruled investments constituted purchases of guaranteed income streams

5 Sep 2016

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Tax | HMRC issues 60,000 APNs since 2014 launch

Since the launch of accelerated payments notices (APNs) in 2014, HMRC has raised £3bn by forcing those under investigation for tax avoidance to pay up disputed tax immediately, although the notices have come under fire in the courts and thousands have been withdrawn

5 Sep 2016

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Business | Digital tax, HMRC and the Accenture relationship

The scale of HMRC’s digital project encompassing the over-arching Making Tax Digital (MTD) programme means IT is core to the tax department and Accenture is picking up some significant software development accounts, reports Calum Fuller

5 Sep 2016

Accountancy Firms

AI & Technology

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Business | Consulting: Brexit boost for Big Four over trade negotiations

Accountants’ expertise will be needed as trade negotiations start following the UK’s vote to leave the EU. Pat Sweet reports on moves by the Big Four to set up full-service Brexit advisory services for clients and potential interaction with government departments

5 Sep 2016

Accountancy Firms

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Tax | HMRC failings lead to unnecessary investigations into taxpayers

HMRC faces criticism as only 48% of individuals and 57% of SMEs believe that the tax authority has the right systems in place to prevent taxpayers from making errors on their tax returns which results in unnecessary investigations

5 Sep 2016

Image for manchester accountant falls foul hmrc ps285k tax fraud

Business | Manchester accountant falls foul of HMRC in £285K tax fraud

An accountant from Levenshulme, who created fake tax returns and expense accounts to steal more than £285,000, has been jailed for three and a half years after falsifying self assessment forms

5 Sep 2016

Called to Account

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Tax | MP calls for tax break for buy-to-let landlords

Conservative MP, Kevin Hollinrake, has tabled an amendment to the Finance Bill calling for a cut in the capital gains tax (CGT) paid by landlords when selling a rental property to a sitting tenant

5 Sep 2016

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Tax | Tax relief extended to touring exhibitions from 1 April 2017

The Treasury has launched a consultation into the museums and galleries tax relief designed to encourage the creation of more and higher quality exhibitions, as well as to support touring of exhibitions across the country and abroad

5 Sep 2016

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Tax | Lib Dems call for 5p ‘plastic bag tax’ on coffee cups

The Liberal Democrats have called for a 5p charge to be introduced on disposable coffee cups across the UK to cut down on usage and disposal, as more than two and a half billion cups are thrown away each year

5 Sep 2016

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Tax | Certificate of residence remains the same despite Brexit

Despite the UK vote for Brexit in the recent EU referendum, there has not been any changes made to the requirement for a certificate of residence, HMRC has confirmed

5 Sep 2016

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Tax | Amendments to Finance Bill could cause difficulties for OECD tax reforms

A proposed amendment to the Finance Bill calls on multinationals to follow county-by-country reporting, could cause difficulties to the implementation of OECD international tax reforms, according to RSM

5 Sep 2016

International Tax