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Insights

Pulling together opinion, analysis, interviews and features on the profession along with a focus on the key issues affecting accountancy and the world of business.

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Insights Special

Equity, diversity and inclusion

An in-depth exploration of diversity and inclusion in accountancy, considering ethnicity, social mobility, gender equity, sexual orientation, disability and intergenerational fairness.
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Diversity heart

Latest news

Company insolvencies hit 18-month high
  • Article
  • 20 Sep 2021
August 2021 saw the number of company insolvencies reach their highest level since the first UK lockdown, with businesses balancing the easing of restrictions with the end of government support.
ICAEW library: provider of 150 years of world class knowledge
  • Article
  • 20 Sep 2021
The year 2021 marks 150 years of ICAEW’s Library & Information Service. In fact, it predates ICAEW by almost a decade. It was a busy year – 1871.
Accounting firms target socio-economic pay gaps
  • Article
  • 20 Sep 2021
ICAEW has hailed the recent publication of socio-economic data by two Big Four firms as ‘a step in the right direction’ but highlighted that data must be used effectively to bring about positive change.
Finance function skills uplifted across NHS Wales
  • Article
  • 17 Sep 2021
A Finance Academy that enables every member of staff working in NHS Wales Finance to learn and progress can only be a benefit.

Latest tax news

Estimated tax gap increases to £35bn
  • Article
  • 17 Sep 2021
HMRC figures released for the pre-pandemic period of 2019/20 show a £2bn increase in the estimated tax gap, largely attributable to an increase in the VAT gap. ICAEW’s Tax Faculty analyses the key data.
OTS provides valuable insights on changing the tax year
  • Article
  • 15 Sep 2021
The Office of Tax Simplification has highlighted the benefits of a tax year aligned with the calendar year or a month-end. While cautioning against an immediate change the report suggests that it is not too early to start some long-term planning.
Uncertain tax treatment rules still complex and confusing, warns ICAEW
  • Article
  • 15 Sep 2021
Draft legislation and guidance implementing the government’s plans for large businesses to report uncertain tax positions will introduce additional complexity and not provide the clarity taxpayers need, according to ICAEW’s Tax Faculty.
New tax avoidance promoter rules could be clearer, says ICAEW
  • Article
  • 15 Sep 2021
Draft legislation aimed at tackling promoters of tax avoidance schemes includes subjective terms and tests which are open to interpretation, says ICAEW. The terms should be amended or HMRC guidance created outlining its interpretation to avoid confusion.

When Chartered Accountants Save the World

The world is changing – and so is the role of chartered accountants. Our major new content series explores how chartered accountants are helping to tackle some of the most urgent social challenges within the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and considers how the profession could do even more in the future. Are you ready?

Two business professionals walking side by side
It’s time for chartered accountants to save the world
  • Article
  • 30 Apr 2021
Chartered accountants must understand their unique role in making a sustainable future happen, argues Peter Bakker, CEO of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development.
Group of business professionals having a meeting outside
Four ways that chartered accountants can encourage diversity
  • Article
  • 27 Jul 2021
The case for diversity and inclusion is stronger than ever. From dealing with data to increasing collaboration, we explore four key areas that can drive real progress and value within the workplace and change the future of the profession.
Two lifts on the outside of a building
Why social inequality is an accountancy issue
  • Article
  • 20 Jul 2021
There are risks to businesses of all sizes and sectors when opportunities across society and the economy are unequal – and chartered accountants have a key role to play in managing and mitigating those risks
Blurry image of people in a business meeting
How can you encourage neurodiversity in your organisation?
  • Article
  • 16 Jul 2021
Neurodiverse teams bring together people with different ways of thinking. Chartered accountants can help to monitor and report on the success of recruitment and retention policies.
Smiling woman surrounded by Post It notes
Businesses must be bold and transparent in their commitment to diversity and inclusion
  • Article
  • 08 Jul 2021
D&I is now a reporting issue and chartered accountants have a key role to play in ensuring that the expectations of stakeholders both inside and outside their organisations are met.
Man in red shirt smiling at camera
A plan to promote Black talent
  • Article
  • 08 Jul 2021
Initiatives such as the Black Talent Charter are galvanising support for policies that can help address the lack of ethnic diversity in senior roles across financial and professional services.

The Crisis of Trust in Data and Information

We consider the role that chartered accountants play in safeguarding data and information that is accurate and objective.

4 ways for chartered accountants to stop criminal activity in their organisation

Chartered accountants can help to spot and prevent fraud from taking place. We examine a real case of a business that discovered its chief financial officer had been falsifying accounts. The real case of a chief financial officer who tried to manipulate his company's financial position to support its share price, and 4 ways that chartered accountants can help to stop similar criminal activity in their organisation. 

Business rescue

A house being built
Business rescue: the painful reality of a CVA
  • Article
  • 09 Apr 2021
Managing director of Perfection Alloys, Fraser Dick, speaks about how hard decisions and empathy from his insolvency practitioner helped his business successfully weather insolvency.
Two hands in silhouette
Insolvency: growing fatigue among ailing businesses?
  • Article
  • 08 Apr 2021
While formal insolvency numbers are lower now than they were pre-Covid, the statistics may be masking many businesses on the brink and many more whose business owners will question whether it’s worth carrying on as the year continues.
Cup of coffee
Insolvency in an atypical recession
  • Article
  • 06 Apr 2021
According to Greg Palfrey of Smith & Williamson, we’ll see waves of insolvency this year as sector by sector, businesses feel the pinch.
People shaking hands
Business rescue: don’t wait and see before seeking help
  • Article
  • 31 Mar 2021
We’re at a pivotal point as we start the transition out of lockdown. Now is the time to engage with professional advisers, including restructuring and insolvency practitioners.

Insights specials

A listing of one-off Insights specials that focus on a particular subject, interviewing the key people, identifying developing trends and examining the underlying issues.

Public sector finances
  • 15 Sep 2021
Covid has taken its toll on both the health of the general public and on public sector finances. We investigate the shape of government finances, both in the UK and internationally.
Hybrid working and the future of work
  • 18 Aug 2021
What opportunities and challenges will come with moving to a more digital workplace?
Navigating the new employment landscape for finance professionals
  • 16 Aug 2021
ICAEW examines how businesses can meet rising expectations on working conditions and salaries, attract experienced talent and bolster business activity as the economy unlocks.
Access to finance: supporting small businesses
  • 04 Aug 2021
In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, ICAEW Insights examines the finance options and support available to small and growing UK companies, and the entrepreneurs behind them.

Top videos

What the Dasgupta Review means for business and accountancy

Professor Sir Partha Dasgupta sat down with ICAEW to talk about his review into the economics of biodiversity and his hopes for the future.

Navigating a pandemic through data visualisation

What the COVID-19 crisis can tell us about visualising data effectively.

The opinions expressed by external guest speakers in interviews or other publications included on this website are, by their nature, those of the speaker. They are not necessarily fully endorsed by the ICAEW or purport to reflect the official policies and views of the ICAEW or its members.

Top podcast episodes

Insights In Focus podcast episode: The gender pension gap
The gender pension gap
  • Podcast
  • 15 Sep 2021
Ros Urwin is joined by a panel of experts to discuss the gender pension gap, a problem that is related to the gender pay gap but has its own, negative characteristics.
A clock on a desk
Late payments, basis period reform and football finance
  • Podcast
  • 26 Aug 2021
On this episode of the ICAEW Insights podcast we discuss the government’s latest efforts to tackle late payments, once-in-a-generation reforms to the tax system, football finance and a potential audit standard for less complex entities.
A person working on laptop
Access to finance: supporting small businesses
  • Podcast
  • 19 Aug 2021
ICAEW’s Head of Corporate Finance, David Petrie, is joined by a panel of experts to discuss debt, equity and other funding options for small businesses in the light of government intervention as a consequence of the pandemic and the return to growth.
Women talking
Women on boards - how do we reach equality?
  • Podcast
  • 14 Jul 2021
The pandemic has pushed back gender parity across the UK FTSE 350 to 2036, with women holding just 22% of all executive committee roles. Just 15 of the top companies have female chief executives. While we’ve made some progress in recent years, what needs to change to reach true equality? ICAEW's Susanna Di Feliciantonio and Jane Berney discuss the issue with a panel of experts.

Top charts of the week

Chart of the week: School-age demographic change
  • Article
  • 16 Sep 2021
This week’s chart illustrates how the number of 10 year-olds in the UK is expected to fall sharply over the rest of the decade, just as the number of 18 year-olds is expected to peak in 2030.
Chart of the week: UK government borrowing
  • Article
  • 09 Sep 2021
While government borrowing requirements have almost halved from its peak in the last financial year, it is still higher than the financial crisis a decade ago.
Chart of the week: Pensions triple lock
  • Article
  • 02 Sep 2021
The triple lock has helped the state pension grow faster than inflation or earnings over the last decade, but will the Chancellor break it for next year’s pension increase?
Chart of the week: Tokyo Olympics cost update
  • Article
  • 22 Jul 2021
Cost overruns have been a recurring feature of the modern Olympic movement, but the pandemic has blown the doors off the budget for the Tokyo games.

Top Infographics

5 key areas of the BEIS White Paper

5 key areas of the BEIS White Paper

This chart reflects the Audit, Reporting and Governance Authority (ARGA)’s significant new powers and the expanded director and auditor duties being proposed in the BEIS White Paper.

It shows at a glance the main areas the White Paper addresses, from establishing ARGA to improving the reliability of audits.

Insights by topic

CEO and President's insights
  • Listing
  • 03 Aug 2020
View an archive of blogs from ICAEW CEO, Michael Izza, and from past ICAEW presidents.
Climate hub Climate change, or the climate emergency is an issue that is defining our time. Are you professionally ready to mitigate the risk and maximise the opportunity of climate change?
Coronavirus (COVID-19) hub Coronavirus is not just a world health emergency; it is an economic one too. The economic impacts are plain to see and emergency provisions are being made worldwide in an attempt to support individuals, business and anyone who advises them. ICAEW is monitoring the situation closely and collating resources as conditions unfold.
Brexit – impact on ICAEW members ICAEW's Brexit hub highlights a range of resources to help you prepare for the end of the transition period on 31 December 2020. ICAEW is working to ensure that business and the profession is able to work as seamlessly as possible in the public interest across Europe and beyond.
COVID-19: global recovery Recovery from the worldwide economic crisis brought about by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic will be piece-meal but informed by initiatives from around the world. While national government schemes will continue to support business and practice during the immediate crisis, international action will help shape the recovery. Here we track those regional, national and supra-national activities.
Student Insights Interviews, guides and features giving you fresh insights, innovative ideas and an inside look at the lives and careers of ICAEW students and members. No matter what stage you’re at in your journey with us, you’ll find content to suit you.
Regulation ICAEW protects the public interest by making sure our firms, members, students and affiliates maintain the highest standards of professional competency and conduct.
Sponsored content Hear what our partners are saying on topical issues impacting the accountancy profession.

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