INSTITUTES - English ICA under attack

The English ICA’s executive will be accused next week of attempting to sidestep a number of Peter Gerrard’s key constitutional reforms.

Jeff Wooller, a leading academic and chairman of the ‘ginger group’ which calls for the ‘democratisation’ of the institute’s procedures, has tabled a motion for next week’s institute agm demanding the membership be allowed to vote on Gerrard’s proposals.

The institute said the motion was both ‘premature and unnecessary, but finds no other difficulty with it’.

Wooller said this reaction was ‘illogical’, adding: ‘It is only unnecessary if council pushes these proposals through. They clearly are not prepared to do this.’ He warned that the institute ‘would either sweep Gerrard under the carpet, or water down his recommendations’.

The institute will take a firmer line with John Denza’s motion that council re-examine its Ethical Statement. Denza, a sole practitioner, asked why auditor objectivity should come under question if an auditor’s spouse owned shares in a client company.

‘Nobody believes every such shareholding poses a self-interest threat.

Those who do are really thinking about what Austin Mitchell might say,’ Denza said. The institute recommended voting against Denza’s motion.

See page 12.