The Chartered Accountants Regulatory Board (CARB) issued the following Press Release this morning. I haven't seen or heard this reported yet but I think it is a welcome development. -
Statement by the Chartered Accountants Regulatory Board
The Complaints Committee of the Chartered Accountants Regulatory Board (CARB), the
body established by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland (ICAI) to regulate
its members, has announced the appointment of Mr. John Purcell, former Comptroller
and Auditor General, as its Special Investigator into the issues concerning directors loans
and other matters at Anglo Irish Bank, to investigate possible breaches of ICAI Bye-Laws
and rules of professional conduct by its members/member firms and specifically:
(a) certain loans made by the Bank to Mr. Sean Fitzpatrick, a director of the Bank
(and a member of the Institute), and actions taken by him in relation to such loans
in the years prior to the disclosure of same by Mr. Fitzpatrick in 2008 and the
treatment of same in the financial statements of the Bank and the subsequent
resignations of Mr. Sean Fitzpatrick and Mr. David Drumm and Mr. William
McAteer, being two other directors of the Bank and each being a member of the
Institute; and
(b) the performance of the Bank’s auditors, Ernst & Young, a member firm of the
Institute, in connection with the audit of the accounts of the Bank in relation to the
said loans to Mr. Fitzpatrick in the years prior to the disclosure of same by Mr.
Fitzpatrick.
The appointment of a Special Investigator follows from the determination of the
Complaints Committee at its meeting in January 2009 that the issues under consideration
constituted a matter of public concern as per Bye-Law 71 of the ICAI Bye-Laws.
The Complaints Committee is considering separately the involvement of ICAI members
in issues raised concerning certain transactions between Anglo Irish Bank plc and
companies in the Irish Life and Permanent Group.
Ends
As a member of the ICAI, I think that the future of self regulation very much depends on the quality of this investigation and the sanctions imposed IF any breaches are uncovered.
Statement by the Chartered Accountants Regulatory Board
The Complaints Committee of the Chartered Accountants Regulatory Board (CARB), the
body established by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland (ICAI) to regulate
its members, has announced the appointment of Mr. John Purcell, former Comptroller
and Auditor General, as its Special Investigator into the issues concerning directors loans
and other matters at Anglo Irish Bank, to investigate possible breaches of ICAI Bye-Laws
and rules of professional conduct by its members/member firms and specifically:
(a) certain loans made by the Bank to Mr. Sean Fitzpatrick, a director of the Bank
(and a member of the Institute), and actions taken by him in relation to such loans
in the years prior to the disclosure of same by Mr. Fitzpatrick in 2008 and the
treatment of same in the financial statements of the Bank and the subsequent
resignations of Mr. Sean Fitzpatrick and Mr. David Drumm and Mr. William
McAteer, being two other directors of the Bank and each being a member of the
Institute; and
(b) the performance of the Bank’s auditors, Ernst & Young, a member firm of the
Institute, in connection with the audit of the accounts of the Bank in relation to the
said loans to Mr. Fitzpatrick in the years prior to the disclosure of same by Mr.
Fitzpatrick.
The appointment of a Special Investigator follows from the determination of the
Complaints Committee at its meeting in January 2009 that the issues under consideration
constituted a matter of public concern as per Bye-Law 71 of the ICAI Bye-Laws.
The Complaints Committee is considering separately the involvement of ICAI members
in issues raised concerning certain transactions between Anglo Irish Bank plc and
companies in the Irish Life and Permanent Group.
Ends
As a member of the ICAI, I think that the future of self regulation very much depends on the quality of this investigation and the sanctions imposed IF any breaches are uncovered.