The unbridled lack of measured regulation at every level is highlighted by the recent Quindell accounting fiasco which is now under investigation by the Serious Fraud Office which is now taking the lead in the probe into accounting irregularities, says Emile Woolf FCA

Premier Foods plc is the latest listed company to flip auditors with the announcement that KPMG will replace PwC after 11 years, an audit the Big Four firm has held since the company was listed

In this month’s audit updates PwC picks up Aberdeen Asset Management as KPMG bows out and renews EasyJet contract, while the Charity Commission launches a financial investigation into accounting and financial governance at the Swimming Teachers’ Association

If audits disregard the client’s culture, they are an expensive waste of time and also raise questions about the auditor, as illustrated in the recent case of Toshiba, and historically in WorldCom back in 2002, says Emile Woolf FCA

As EU regulations on audit are tightened up and listed companies face increasing pressure and mandatory requirements to retender their audits, Paul George, executive director of conduct at the Financial Reporting Council (FRC), stresses the importance of annual audit quality inspections to maintain audit quality

The government has made clear that regulating the accountancy profession will remain the preserve of the professional bodies and the Financial Reporting Council (FRC), and will not be subject to statutory legislation in its outline of how it intends to implement the EU Audit Directive and Regulation

Barclays has announced it is to appoint KPMG as its auditor for the year ending 31 December 2017, ending a relationship with PwC which has lasted over a century

In our monthly round-up of the audit sector, we analyse the findings of the annual FRC Audit Quality Inspection (AQI) report for 2014/15 focusing on the Big Four firms, PwC, Deloitte, KPMG and EY, and mid-tier firm BDO, including an exclusive interview with FRC executive director of conduct Paul George. By Sara White and Penny Sukhraj

Recurring issues in the latest annual Audit Quality Inspections Annual Report 2014/15 (AQI) reports may test the spirit of co‑operation between the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) and accounting firms, warns Katharine Bagshaw FCA