The Big Four audit firms are under severe pressure from the audit regulator, the Financial Reporting Council, as the latest round of audit quality inspection reports show a sharp decline in standards and a particularly harsh report citing unacceptable audit practices at KPMG. Sara White, editor of Accountancy, asks whether it is time to overhaul the whole system

A summary of FRC's latest AQI reports includes, Big Four firms undermine value of audit, KPMG comes under fire over ‘unacceptable’ audit quality, Deloitte pulled up over component auditor work, EY bank audits criticised as score drops

The work and pensions select committee has challenged PwC and audit partner Steve Denison for more details about their work on the audit of BHS and the Taveta group accounts, which were signed off on a going concern basis days before the retailer was sold for £1

The Financial Reporting Council’s (FRC’s) first full inspection of Moore Stephens under its annual quality inspection (AQI) review process has found that the firm needs to clarify its relationship with other network firms and make better use of IT in its audit work, as well as improving its work on pension schemes

Mazars should give audit quality a higher priority in its staff and partner appraisals and work on improving its auditing of banks, according to the findings of the latest audit quality inspection (AQI) by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) which was largely positive about the firm’s approach

The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has highlighted concerns over PwC’s ability to challenge management, particularly when estimating future contract costs, and has also criticised the firm’s auditing of the mining sector, as part of the regulator’s 2017/18 Audit Quality Inspection (AQI), reports Amy Austin

Deloitte has been criticised over its audit team’s oversight and assessment of component auditors’ work, especially in areas of risk, while also being hauled up over auditing of tax exposures in foreign jurisdictions, in the latest Audit Quality Inspection (AQI) report from the Financial Reporting Council (FRC), reports Amy Austin

The FRC’s Audit Quality Inspection has criticised EY’s audit of provisions at its financial services clients, together with pension scheme assets and liabilities, as the firm’s percentage of audits needing improvement has jumped, reports Philip Smith

One in four listed audits require improvements while a failure to challenge company managements about future forecasts and scrutinise financial decisions is undermining the value of audit by Big Four audit firms according to the latest FRC Audit Quality Inspection (AQI) reports, reports Sara White

BDO has received a largely clean bill of health in the Financial Reporting Council’s (FRC’s) annual quality inspection of the firm, with the regulator finding a continued improvement in recent years, with seven of the eight audits reviewed requiring no more than limited improvements, reports Pat Sweet

The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has singled out KPMG’s audit work for increased scrutiny over the next year, after identifying an ‘unacceptable deterioration in quality’ in its latest annual quality inspection (AQI), with half of the firm’s FTSE 350 audits judged in need of improvements and strong criticism of the level of management challenge, lack of professional scepticism, and inconsistencies in audit practice

Grant Thornton needs to address some independence and ethics issues, and increase management challenge in areas involving judgement according to the firm’s annual quality inspection (AQI) report, but the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) noted ‘some improvement’ on the previous year’s findings and more instances of good practice