Uma lei para regulamentar o mercado de Auditoria na Europa

“The role of auditors has been called into question due to the financial crisis. “We need to win back the confidence of investors, who are looking for high-quality and independent auditing to give them the assurance that they need when investing in Europe’s companies”, said Sajjad Karim (ECR, UK), who is responsible for the audit reform package.

Better quality:

The law would require auditors in the EU to publish audit reports according to international auditing standards. For auditors of public-interest entities (PIEs), such as banks, insurance companies and listed companies, the committee agreed that audit firms would have to provide shareholders and investors with a detailed understanding of what the auditor did and an overall assurance of the accuracy of the company’s accounts.

Competition and transparency:

As part of a series of measures to open up the market and improve transparency, the committee backed the proposed prohibition of “Big 4-only” contractual clauses requiring that the audit be done by one of these firms.

PIEs would be obliged to issue a call for tenders when selecting a new auditor. To ensure that relations between the auditor and the audited company do not become too cosy, MEPs approved a mandatory rotation rule whereby an auditor may inspect a company’s books for a maximum 14 years, which could be increased to 25 years if safeguards are put in place. The Commission had proposed 6 years, but a majority in committee judged that this would be a costly and unwelcome intervention in the audit market.

Independence of non-auditing services:

To preclude conflicts of interest and threats to independence, EU audit firms would be required to abide by rules mirroring those in effect internationally. Most committee members saw the proposed general prohibition on offering non-auditing services as counterproductive for audit quality. They agreed that only non-auditing services that could jeopardise independence should be prohibited. They also approved a list of services that would be prohibited under the new law.

For instance, auditing firms would be able to continue providing certification of compliance with tax requirements, but prohibited from supplying tax advisory services which directly affect the company’s financial statements and may be subject to question by national tax authorities”

(via Gouvernance – Jacques Grisé)

Recomendações da ECFP a Grupos de Cidadãos Eleitores, Partidos Políticos e Coligações Eleitorais

Foram publicadas online as “Recomendações da ECFP a Grupos de Cidadãos Eleitores, Partidos Políticos e Coligações Eleitorais“, relativas à eleição dos órgãos representativos das autarquias locais de 2013, destinadas a facilitar a aplicação das regras e procedimentos legais e regulamentares relativos à prestação de contas de campanha:

• Recomendações – Grupos de Cidadãos Eleitores
• Recomendações – Partidos Políticos e Coligações Eleitorais