Jeremy Newman lined up for Audit Commission chair
Eric Pickles lines up former BDO chief Jeremy Newman to wind down Audit Commission
FORMER BDO chief Jeremy Newman has been lined up to take the Audit Commission’s chairmanship.
Newman, who served as managing partner of BDO between 2001 and 2008, and then as chief executive of BDO International, is the preferred candidate of communities and local government secretary Eric Pickles for the Audit Commission role.
He will attend a pre-appointment hearing at the Communities and Local Government Select Committee on 3 September, and then it will issue a report setting out its views on the candidate’s suitability for the post.
If accepted, Newman will spend his tenure winding down the commission. It has already transferred its in-house local government audits to private sector firms.
Newman, who is set to serve as a judge in the British Accountancy Awards, is one of the UK’s most respected accountants.
During his tenure as head of BDO, the firm won numerous Best Employer gongs, and Newman himself was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award in last year’s British Accountancy Awards.
He led the firm through its unification, and was in charge at BDO International as it successfully defended itself against litigation regarding its former client Banco Espirito.
Earlier this year, he served as a consultant to RSM Tenon prior to new management taking over at the listed firm.