The EC issues its proposals on audit policy: The European Commission published a proposed directive amending the Directive of 2006 on statutory audit and a proposed regulation on specific requirements regarding statutory audit of public interest entities. The impact assessment on these proposals is also available. View

 

FEE supports proportionate regulation aimed at enhancing audit quality and audit services supply but does not believe that overly prescriptive regulation and curtailing the profession’s capacity to provide services is the way forward. These proposals will be considered in details in the next meeting of the FEE Executive and Council. View

 

FEE approves its comments on IASB Agenda Consultation: In FEE’s view, a period of calm should be a guiding principle for the Board when shaping the strategic direction of its future standard setting activity. However, IASB should first complete the four unfinished major convergence standards. They should also subsequently work on implementation issues responding to the needs for simplification and strengthening the consistency of the existing IFRS standards. View

 

The EC proposes a revision of the Accounting Directives: The European Commission proposed a Directive to replace and modernise the existing Accounting Directives. The proposal simplifies the Accounting requirements for small companies and improves the clarity and comparability of companies’ financial statements within the Union. It also introduces a system of country-by-country reporting of payments to governments applicable only to the sectors of extractive industries and forestry.

 

The specific regime for micro-entities that has been approved by the JURI Committee of the European Parliament and should be voted in the plenary session in the third week of December will be introduced in this proposal at a later stage. View

 

ESMA publishes an opinion on sovereign debts: Since the summer, ESMA conducted together with national competent authorities a fact-finding exercise on the accounting treatment of Greek sovereign debt in the half-year financial statements based on a sample of financial institutions listed in EU regulated markets.

 

Though ESMA cannot predict market developments and how the facts and circumstances relevant for financial reporting will look at the end of the year, ESMA believes that the Opinion contains elements that are relevant for issuers and their auditors to consider – together with the other elements presented in this Public Statement – when preparing or auditing the financial statements for the upcoming year end. View

 

Unearthing the Power of Professional Accountancy Organizations: This brochure issued by IFAC provides a more in-depth explanation of the role professional accountancy organizations (PAOs) play in helping to strengthen economies and generate development assistance globally. It addresses challenges to a PAO’s potential impact and looks at IFAC’s efforts to counteract these challenges. View

 

The EC launches a programme to support SMEs competitiveness: The Programme for the Competitiveness of Enterprises and SMEs, COSME, is a funding instrument, which is largely continuing the activities under the current Competitiveness and Innovation programme (CIP). It has the following general objectives:

• Improve access to finance for SMEs in the form of equity and debt

• Improve access to markets inside the Unionand globally

• Promote entrepreneurship.

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