Bringing together accounting standards at home and abroad

The International Accounting Standards Committee has a pact with the International Organisation of Securities Commission to achieve a core set of international standards for use on cross-border offerings and listings as an alternative to national standards by March 1998. If it remains on course it will most likely meet this ambitious target this year.

It will have far reaching consequences for the future regulation of UK accounting, as the rumbling discontent already indicates.

There are two key areas in which the UK is out of line with the rest of the world – accounting for tax and pensions. The ASB has got to decide whether it just accepts everything the IASC does, stays independent, or finds some middle ground. The feedback from the profession is pro-harmonisation where possible, but sticking to UK standards where they are totally opposed to international standards. Sound familiar?

The Accounting Standards Board will also be hoping for a smoother passage for the revised Statement of Principles, to be released in the third quarter of this year. It must spell out the fundamental accounting concepts of true and fair, accruals and going concern, and dispel rumours of a move towards current cost accounting.

Sir David Tweedie, chairman of the Accounting Standards Board, says the principles will be virtually the same but the presentation will be clearer.

A smoother passage looks like a pipedream.