Northern Ireland accountant Tony Nicholl has been appointed chairman of the Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies (CCAB), the umbrella group representing UK accountancy bodies, and has said his focus will be on building trust in the profession and examining the relationship between business and the EU in the run-up to the referendum on EU membership
Nicholl takes over from Jann Brown, immediate past president of ICAS.
An experienced forensic accountant and expert witness, Nicholl is the president of Chartered Accountants Ireland and managing partner of GMcG Chartered Accountants Group and has over 20 years' experience gained in some of the largest commercial, matrimonial and personal injury cases in Northern Ireland.
Nicholl said: ‘CCAB's focus in the year ahead is to support growth, encourage financial stability and transparency as well as promoting trust in the profession and demonstrating the value that professional accountants bring to the economies of the UK and Ireland.
‘We will also examine the role of the EU in supporting the business agenda and its influence on the UK and Irish economies in particular.’
In addition, a priority for CCAB will be to tackle the problem of money laundering by encouraging a joined-up approach between policy makers, business and other authorities such as the police.
‘We believe that professional accountants are the gatekeepers of the financial system and we will work with government to strengthen the regime to confront money laundering,’ Nicholl said.
The combined membership of the five CCAB bodies - ICAEW, ACCA, ICAS, CIPFA and Chartered Accountants Ireland - is 245,000 accountants in the UK and Ireland, with 354,000 members worldwide.
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