The “flawless” audit exists in the mind alone. Regulators such as the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) are therefore having to deal with the many that, in varying degrees, are flawed. However, the FRC’s practice of allowing so many years to pass before reporting their findings and punishing the culprits undoubtedly weakens its authority and blunts […]

Accountancy-online – February 2020 My last article focused on the susceptibility of purchased “goodwill” to manipulation, and I cited instances in which its overvaluation had destroyed accounting reliability, causing severe losses to investors. This time let’s take a look at the ease with which another asset, year-end stock of goods, can wreak havoc with a […]

  ECONOMIC PERSPECTIVES – 84    [July 2020] Those of us struggling to get a grip on Chancellor Sunak’s latest relief-measures should note the terminology. He seeks to revive the Covid-stricken economy with a series of tax “giveaways”.  When anyone in government talks about giving something away, it’s instructive to ask yourself how they got it […]

  Although I have forgotten most of my own auditing experiences, a few still stand out. A client company that was in business as a confectionary retailer sold cakes over the counter, either whole or in weighed-out portions. The principal internal control was reconciling the weight of cakes leaving the bakery with the weight of […]

  ECONOMIC PERSPECTIVES – 80 [GOING POSTAL – 1st June 2020] EMILE WOOLF In his latest book (“The Body – a Guide for Occupants”) Bill Bryson highlights the limitations on what money can buy. He points out, for example, that America spends more per capita on healthcare than any other nation in the world: two-and-a-half […]

ECONOMIC PERSPECTIVES – 72 Those still shedding tears over our departure from the EU invariably refer to the success of the EU in healing post-WW2 wounds and keeping peace in Europe for 75 years. By the same token they imply that, by leaving, we are creating a dangerous rift that threatens to spark a resurgence […]

Dear Ronald Please feel free to submit this. You can give my name as author if you wish. Site value taxation This is a tax on land values, based on the value of the land alone – not on buildings or other improvements. Under this system development is encouraged because it has absolutely no effect […]

  TODAY’S ELECTION – WHAT IT’S REALLY ABOUT Emile Woolf The looming election appears patently divisive. But it isn’t the election itself that’s doing it. The division arises from the starkness of choice confronting the nation. The very word “di-vision” almost evokes a condition of “split vision”. It could, for example, mean that the political […]

[ECONOMIC PERSPECTIVES – 63] [EMILE WOOLF 20-9-19] The US Department of Defence is a major customer of many private sector suppliers, including the Boeing Company. Although relationships between customer and supplier are mutually beneficial, that is by no means the only reason why Boeing has proved to be such an enduring commercial success.   100years […]

“ACCOUNTANCYDAILY” [ONLINE] OCTOBER 2019 – EMILE WOOLF  PROPER AUDITS – STILL TOO DISTANT While recently rummaging through some old papers I spotted the transcript of a lecture I gave in 2003 called “How can audits be made effective?” I was intrigued, but not surprised, to note that the subject matter of that lecture nearly 17 […]