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• ‘Scandalous’ £3.4bn UK state spending on private consultants last year

  31-08-2024 15:00
  
  New figures reveal that public bodies paid out at least 60% more to consultancies in 2023-24 than it did pre-pandemicPrivate consultants were paid a “scandalous” £3.4bn by public bodies last year, new figures reveal.The statistics, from outsourcing data company Tussell, show that government spending on private consultants was £1.3bn (62%) higher in 2023-24 than 2019-20. They also reveal that the surge in consultant spending seen during Covid has failed to come back down t
  
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• Goldman Sachs and Deloitte are latest to scrap diversity initiatives

  11-02-2025 16:32
  Banking giant drops policy pushing for board diversity, while major consultant tells staff to ditch pronouns in emailGoldman Sachs and Deloitte have become the latest corporate giants to redraw policies in the face of Donald Trump’s anti-diversity drive.The banking giant has scrapped a policy meant to encourage diversity on the boards of companies that it takes public. Under the 2020 policy, Goldman had stated that it would only take on a company’s initial public offering if the comp
  
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• KPMG under investigation over audit of gambling company Entain

  20-01-2025 12:54
  FRC confirms inquiry into accounting firm’s 2022 audit of Ladbrokes, Coral and Sportingbet ownerBusiness live – latest updatesThe accounting firm KPMG is under investigation by the sector’s UK regulator over its audit of the 2022 accounts of the gambling company Entain.The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) said its enforcement division would be examining the conduct of the “big four” accounting firm, without saying what the investigation related to. Continue reading
  
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• Philippe Carden obituary

  08-01-2025 18:44
  
  My partner Philippe Carden, who has died aged 74 of oesophageal cancer, was a well-known accountant in the field of theatre, film, television and the arts.He was passionate about all the performing arts and he combined this with a talent for making personal tax less daunting. He was much loved by his clients and always made a big impression with the graduating students at the London and Bristol drama schools with his annual lecture on “How to survive the UK tax system”. Continue read
  
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• Stephen Duckworth obituary

  05-01-2025 13:15
  My father, Stephen Duckworth, who has died aged 85, dedicated much of his life to supporting the provision of social housing, economic justice and local community causes in North Kensington, London. He was a quiet, gentle man, described as “secretly brilliant” and a respected leader by colleagues and friends.Stephen was best known for his time as finance director of the National Housing Federation, from 1982 to 2002, playing a crucial role in guiding the introduction of private finan
  
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• UK job vacancies fall at fastest rate since pandemic as business confidence slumps

  09-12-2024 07:00
  Blow to Labour growth hopes as poll finds demand for staff falling at ‘sharp and accelerated pace’, particularly in permanent rolesThe number of job vacancies in November fell at the fastest rate since the start of the pandemic, as business confidence slumped to its lowest level in almost two years, according to two new reports.In a damaging blow to the government efforts to boost growth, the latest monthly report on the job market from accountancy firm KPMG and the Recruitment and E
  
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• Microsoft Excel’s bloopers reel: nearly 40 years of spreadsheet errors

  28-10-2024 15:00
  As the software used by millions around the world nears its 40th birthday, here are some of the low pointsFor millions of people, from accountants to the person in charge of the work rota, Microsoft Excel has been been a godsend.But as the spreadsheet software nears its 40th birthday, spare a thought for those who misplaced a decimal, left out a row or got their cut and paste wrong. Here are some of the most memorable examples. Continue reading...
  
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• China gives PwC record £47m fine and six-month ban over Evergrande

  13-09-2024 12:52
  Accountancy firm accused of issuing false audits says it has sacked six partners and five other staff have leftThe China arm of the accountancy firm PwC has been banned for six months and fined a record 441m yuan (£47m) over its audit of the collapsed property developer Evergrande, according to Chinese authorities.Beijing’s ministry of finance imposed a six-month business suspension on PwC Zhong Tian, the accounting firm’s main division in mainland China, along with a 116m yuan
  
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• PwC to start tracking working locations of all UK employees

  05-09-2024 21:27
  
  Accounting firm tells its 26,000 workers move is to ensure workers spend ‘minimum of three days a week’ in officeThe consultancy PwC has told its employees it is going to begin tracking their working locations to ensure that all workers spend “a minimum of three days a week” in the office or at client sites.In a memo sent to its 26,000 UK employees, the big four accounting firm announced that it will start monitoring how often employees work from home in the same way it m
  
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• UK public bodies spent ‘scandalous’ £3.4bn on private consultants last year

  31-08-2024 15:00
  New figures reveal the public sector paid out at least 60% more to consultancies than it did before the pandemicPrivate consultants were paid a “scandalous” £3.4bn by public bodies last year, new figures reveal.The statistics, from outsourcing data company Tussell, show that government spending on private consultants was £1.3bn (62%) higher in 2023-24 than 2019-20. They also reveal that the surge in consultant spending seen during Covid has failed to come back down to pre
  
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• PwC expecting six-month China ban over Evergrande audit

  22-08-2024 12:52
  Company tells clients it also expects to receive a large fine following property developer’s collapseThe auditor PwC China has reportedly told clients that it expects to receive a six-month ban from Chinese authorities, and potentially a large fine, as a punishment for its role in auditing the collapsed property developer Evergrande.PwC expects to be banned from conducting regulated activities in China, such as signing off on financial results, for six months starting in September, the Fin
  
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• PwC fined £15m for failing to report suspected fraud at City firm

  16-08-2024 16:22
  Fine is FCA’s first against an auditor and follows PwC being hit with £4.9m penalty over audit by another regulatorThe UK financial services watchdog has fined PwC a record £15m after audit staff failed to tell regulators they suspected fraud at a City firm that collapsed in 2019, leaving more than 11,000 investors almost £240m out of pocket.It marks the first Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) fine against an auditor, and comes three months after PwC was hit with a £
  
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• PwC chief’s $1.2m bonus kept ‘secret for more than a year’, inquiry told

  02-08-2024 09:21
  Kevin Burrowes received additional salary from the firm’s international arm but did not initially reveal it to parliamentary inquiry into companyFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastThe chief executive of PwC Australia, Kevin Burrowes, received a $1.2m payment from the consulting company’s international arm which he did not initially reveal to the parliamentary inquiry into the 2015 leaking of c
  
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• Rachel Reeves urged to crack down on wealthy tax avoiders

  26-07-2024 16:49
  Calls follow Guardian undercover investigation as chancellor poised to reveal £20bn hole in UK financesRachel Reeves is facing calls to crack down on the super-rich using offshore pension schemes to avoid multimillion pound inheritance and capital gains tax bills, following a Guardian investigation.On Thursday, undercover filming revealed how ultra-wealthy individuals are being advised how to use a loophole in pensions investments to shelter their wealth from Labour’s clampdown on la
  
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• Super-rich being advised how to avoid Labour tax clampdown, undercover investigation suggests

  25-07-2024 08:00
  Revealed: Wealthy being pitched offshore products said to shelter fortunes from inheritance tax and capital gains taxThe super-rich are being advised how to use a loophole in pensions investments to shelter their wealth from Labour’s clampdown on large-scale tax dodging, the Guardian can reveal.Undercover filming by the Guardian suggests multimillionaire UK residents are being pitched offshore products said to legally protect their fortunes from inheritance tax (IHT) and capital gains tax
  
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• Will the big consultancies finally pay the price? | Fiona Katauskas

  13-06-2024 06:27
  
  Depends if you believe in fairy talesSee more of Fiona Katauskas’s cartoons here Continue reading...
  
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• The PwC scandal put the big four in the spotlight – but hyper-corporate capitalism remains untouched | Ian Gow and Stuart Kells

  13-06-2024 02:23
  
  Australia should be working with like-minded countries to design and build a new architecture of corporate oversight and integrityThe “big four” accounting firms – PwC, Deloitte, EY and KPMG – have long played a critical role in capitalism with their collective monopoly on audits of the financial reports of large corporations in every major jurisdiction around the world.With a combined total of well over a million employees, they are major players in a variety of business
  
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• The PwC scandal sparked scrutiny of advisory firms. Is Australia’s consulting sector about to see a reckoning?

  11-06-2024 17:00
  
  Accountability and regulation are set to be prominent as the federal inquiry releases its final report on WednesdayGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastA federal inquiry is due to release its final report into consulting services on Wednesday in long-awaited findings that could redefine how the sector operates in Australia in the wake of the PwC tax leaks scandal.The parliamentary committee is set to address issues of accountability and regulation in its recom
  
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• ‘Big four’ accountancy firms PwC and EY fined over LC&F audit failures

  07-05-2024 14:35
  
  Firms fined millions after London Capital & Finance’s 2019 crash wiped out customers’ savings“Big four” accountancy firms PricewaterhouseCoopers and EY have been fined a combined £9.3m for a series of failures in auditing the accounts of London Capital & Finance, the collapsed mini-bond firm that wiped out the investments of thousands of savers.It concludes a near four-year investigation by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) into how auditors breached the
  
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• ‘Incredible failure’: KPMG rejects claims it assessed ‘the wrong company’ before $423m payment to Paladin

  23-02-2024 20:00
  
  Exclusive: Firm’s denial comes after weeks of intense criticism, including accusations that it misled parliament • Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastConsultancy firm KPMG Australia has rejected claims it conducted due diligence on “the wrong company” before the federal government gave nearly half a billion dollars to a controversial company with no track record.The firm’s objection to comments by a member of a Senate inquiry exa
  
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• EY Oceania accused of potential conflict of interest over government contracts on climate policy

  23-01-2024 15:00
  
  Exclusive: consultancy firm supported oil and gas industry lobbying while being paid for independent advice on Albanese’s signature climate policyFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastConsultancy firm EY Oceania was supporting the oil and gas industry’s lobbying efforts while being paid by the federal government for independent advice on its signature climate policy and gas emissions.The firm, wh
  
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• Morgan Stanley and Allen & Overy helping oligarch’s efforts to seize Russian oil firm

  08-01-2024 11:02
  Exclusive: Sergey Kolesnikov has supplied building materials to Russian military and for use in occupied UkraineAn oligarch who has supplied building materials to the Russian military machine and for construction in occupied areas of Ukraine is being assisted by Morgan Stanley and Allen & Overy in his attempt to gain control of a huge Russian oil asset, the Guardian can reveal.Sergey Kolesnikov, originally from Russia but now a Maltese citizen under its “golden passport” scheme i
  
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• Watchdog investigates accountant at bankrupt Thurrock council

  03-01-2024 15:29
  Financial Reporting Council looking into compliance of ex-official at council that ran up £500m deficitThe UK’s accounting watchdog has launched an investigation into an accountant at Thurrock council after the Conservative-run local authority’s failed investment spree landed it in effective bankruptcy.The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) said its move related to an individual’s compliance with governance, reporting, regulations and professional standards at the Essex co
  
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• FBI to help Cypriot police investigate sanction-busting for Russian oligarchs

  06-12-2023 07:00
  Agents will explore how lawyers and accountants in Cyprus helped shield assets of Kremlin-linked business peopleFBI agents tasked with investigating sanctions-busting have been dispatched to Cyprus as the global crackdown against Russian oligarchs, and the web of enablers who have helped hide their wealth, intensifies.The 24-strong team was expected to start “assisting Cypriot police” with immediate effect after arriving on the eastern Mediterranean island late Sunday. Continue readi
  
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• MPs condemn payment of millions to consultants over federally funded grant schemes

  22-11-2023 23:00
  Politicians and union say assessment of applications should no longer be outsourced to private companiesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastConsultants have been paid millions of dollars to help design federally funded grant schemes and assist in assessing applications to such programs, drawing bipartisan rebuke from MPs concerned about potential conflicts of interest.The politicians and a union believe the assessment of grant applications is “core work
  
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• EY fired Australian partner accused of promoting tax minimisation scheme, letter published by Senate inquiry reveals

  17-11-2023 06:12
  The former partner is accused of receiving more than $700,000 in unauthorised payments from clients, letter saysFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastConsulting giant EY fired an Australian partner accused of promoting a tax minimisation scheme and receiving more than $700,000 in unauthorised payments from clients, according to a letter published by a Senate inquiry.According to the letter, EY was aware of t
  
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• PwC Cyprus moved £1bn for Russian tycoon on day he was put under sanctions

  14-11-2023 17:00
  Leaked files raise questions over timing of deal as government of Cyprus reveals ‘ongoing’ criminal investigationOne of the world’s biggest accountancy firms helped Russia’s “richest” oligarch attempt to transfer £1bn in a public company on the day he was placed under EU sanctions, leaked documents suggest. The disclosure raises serious questions about the role played by PwC Cyprus in a potential sanctions breach.Details of the blue-chip accountant&rsquo
  
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• PwC defends plans to cut 600 jobs rather than bosses’ pay

  07-11-2023 14:48
  
  News come months after PwC revealed more than 1,000 UK partners would be paid £906,000 eachPwC’s chairman has defended plans to cut up to 600 jobs rather than cut partner pay amid a slowdown in client demand, saying it was important to offer “competitive” pay packages to senior staff.The accounting and consultancy firm said it was trying to right-size the business following weaker growth, rising costs and a drop in the number of employees quitting on their own accord, in
  
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• KPMG lodges complaint after AI-generated material was used to implicate them in non-existent scandals

  03-11-2023 06:10
  
  Senate inquiry into Australian consultancy industry concedes its integrity has been undermined by reliance on case studies generated by Google Bard AI toolFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastA Senate committee has warned artificial intelligence may have seriously undermined its integrity, after consultancy giant KPMG lodged an official complaint about factually inaccurate information receiving parliamentar
  
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• Australian academics apologise for false AI-generated allegations against big four consultancy firms

  02-11-2023 15:08
  
  Case studies created by Google Bard AI as part of submission to parliamentary inquiry proven to be factually incorrectGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastA group of academics have agreed to offer an unreserved apology to the big four consultancy firms after admitting they used artificial intelligence to make false allegations of serious wrongdoing in a submission to a parliamentary inquiry.The accusations have been met with scorn by the firms, concerned that
  
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