At the second stakeholder meeting occasioned by the Oxera report into audit choice, FRC chief executive Paul Boyle called for nominations for the Market Participants Group to be made by 29 September.

‘The first exercise of the group would be to sift through over 100 good ideas submitted by various stakeholders on this debate, and to prioritise which ones are worthy of exploring further,’ Boyle said.

The group will discuss suggestions including: breaking up the Big Four; joint auditing between large and small firms; and opening up the audit files of departing firms to incoming auditors.

But the agreement on the establishment of the group masks deep divisions in the feelings of participants as the debate progresses. PricewaterhouseCoopers has maintained that the argument on choice is itself misconceived. Peter Wyman, head of professional affairs at the firm, said this week: ‘If someone arrived from Mars, they would think the profession was in a terrific crisis. Research shows the fund managers have lots of confidence in the market and London is benefiting by the billions. We must be careful we don’t take steps to damage this.’

Meanwhile, investors are seeking more radical approaches. Head of investment affairs at the Association of British Insurers Peter Montagnon noted that the Competition Commission should be keeping an eye on the audit industry.

He added that there was a feeling among members of the association that there was a serious risk of over-regulation. ‘This could serve to preserve rather than drive business. The audit profession is not immune to the rules of competition that apply to others,’ he said.