The Quoted Companies Alliance Corporate Governance Expert Group has advised on our response to the Financial Reporting Council's consultation on the revisions to the UK Corporate Governance Code and Guidance on Audit Committees. Some key points of our response include:
- The revised wording in paragraph C.1.3 may lead to boilerplate statements by directors and so seems to be against the FRC's aim to 'cut clutter'.
- The revised provision C.3.2 effectively extends the remit of the audit committee to include the accountability for the whole annual report. We believe that the integrity of a company’s annual report should be the responsibility of the entire board.
- Limiting the general requirement for tendering for audit services to FTSE 350 companies in the first instance is welcomed. However, we noted that this aspect is under review in the European Commission and Parliament and so it may be best to wait until the outcome of this review before introducing new requirements.
