Employment Rights Bill

With the Employment Rights Bill proceeding through the House of Lords, ICAEW has sought to highlight members’ concerns about the Bill’s impact on employment costs, labour flexibility and business dynamism.

ICAEW distributed a briefing recommending improvements to the Bill to approximately 50 parliamentary stakeholders. At its Second Reading, Shadow Business and Trade Minister Lord Sharpe quoted ICAEW directly. He referenced a member that ICAEW had based its briefing upon. The concerns he expressed on cumulative business costs, unfair dismissal protections and SME impacts were well aligned with ICAEW’s views. ICAEW member Lord Vaux of Harrowden’s remarks also echoed those of the wider membership.

Ahead of the Bill’s Committee Stage, ICAEW also engaged with peers on securing exemptions for small and microbusinesses and reductions in the administrative burden of flexible working arrangements.

Audit and Corporate Governance Reform

April saw Baroness Bowles bring an oral question in the Lords regarding the Audit and Corporate Governance Reform Bill. Ahead of the question, ICAEW sent a briefing to our members in the Lords and other peers with an interest in the legislation, arguing that the Audit Reporting and Governance Authority should be an enabling regulator with oversight of all directors. 

Later in the month, ICAEW Chief Policy and Communications Officer Iain Wright met with Sophia Kewell, Special Adviser to the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, Jonathan Reynolds. Their discussion offered reassurance that despite many business challenges and constrained legislative space, the government is keen to move forward with the audit reform programme and provide certainty to businesses.

Issues such as managed shared audit and ways to encourage a more competitive sector were discussed, including lowering regulatory barriers for a more dynamic market. Wright offered ICAEW’s assistance in amplifying ministerial messages and providing member views into policy areas, including director responsibilities and the definition of public interest entities.

UK-US trade

ICAEW Chair Peter Wyman attended a call led by Minister for Trade Policy and Economic Security Douglas Alexander, who briefed attendees on the UK’s response to the planned tariffs from the US administration. The call was attended by businesses and business representative organisations of all sizes, in all sectors and in all UK regions and nations.

Iain Wright then wrote to the minister, sharing insights from ICAEW’s members working in sectors including fashion, aerospace and financial services, detailing their experiences navigating the US’s recent tariff announcements. 

Members broadly agreed that the government had been correct to not impose retaliatory tariffs, but encouraged the government to consider measures to help prevent dumping of goods in the UK in light of changes to the international trading system.

Anti-corruption

ICAEW’s Duncan Wiggetts, Chief Officer, Professional Standards Department; Laura Hough, Director, Trust and Ethics; and David Gomez, Senior Adviser, Ethics, met with Baroness Hodge DBE, the Prime Minister’s Anti-Corruption Champion. Baroness Hodge shared a preview of the structure and content of the Anti-Corruption Strategy, currently in the early drafting stage, and ICAEW offered to convene working groups and to liaise with the Fraud Advisory Panel to support the development of the strategy.

ICAEW’s stance on anti-money laundering supervisory reform was also discussed, with Wiggetts emphasising our support for gradual consolidation of the sector.

Industrial strategy for professional and business services

ICAEW convened a round table with member firms from across the UK and Department for Business and Trade (DBT) officials in relation to the professional and business services facet of the Industrial Strategy. 

DBT officials set out the government’s vision for the sector and asked members which issues are a priority for the sector and where government, regulators and professional bodies can make the most difference to enabling growth.

A wide range of issues pertaining to the profession were discussed, including regulatory challenges, audit reform, innovation and the talent pipeline. 

On regulatory reform, attendees stressed the need for long-term certainty to support investment, and delays to audit reform and making tax digital were flagged as disruptive. 

On skills, firms voiced concern over the future of schemes already invested in, including Level 7 apprenticeships, which member firms view as a tried-and-tested route to fostering higher skill levels in the economy. 

On 28 April, ICAEW’s Chief Executive, Alan Vallance, joined the heads of fellow professional bodies ACCA and CIPFA, in publishing an open letter to the UK government urging the government to rethink its plans on funding for Level 7 apprenticeships.