ICAS hits out at 'sceptical public'
ICAS president Andrew Christie has lashed out at critics of auditors, urging a move to reestablish the balance of blame.
Speaking at the Scots institute’s annual awards ceremony in Glasgow, Christie criticised at ‘a sceptical public and an even more cynical press’.
Christie said: ‘Enron is clearly an issue of huge concern. That does not necessarily mean that we should regard the auditors as the prime culprits. We need to try to re-establish in the re-establish in the minds of a sceptical public and even more cynical press, a basic truth ‘that the people with primary responsibility for running a business are the directors.’
He did however acknowledge that auditors should be whistle blowers to any irregularities.
Christie also threw a few more pertinent questions into the ring. He said: ‘Is it sensible to motivate and reward employees, in particular senior management, with short-term stock options? Should employees with access to sensitive financial information and with the ability to influence the market by the comments they make, be allowed to trade shares on a virtually unrestricted basis?’