Shake up at ICAEW with new independent regulatory board

The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) is shaking up its regulatory arrangements to highlight issues surrounding oversight and governance.

The ICAEW aims to ensure a fully independent approach by setting up a new regulatory board that will feature menders who are not accounting professionals.

Professional standards

The new board will oversee the professional standards activities of the Institute. It will operate as the ICAEW Regulatory Board (IRB), replacing the current Professional Standards Board (PSB).

Sir Christopher Kelly, chairman of the Committee on Standards in Public Life, made the restructuring decision after a review.

Kelly, who also ran a review into governance issues at the troubled Co-operative Group in 2014, has introduced the changes as part of a package of initiatives aimed at toughening up the governance and oversight actions of the ICAEW.

Independent members

Michael Caplan QC, a partner with law firm Kingsley Napley, will chair the new board. It will be made up of both lay and professional independent members, in contrast to its predecessor the Professional Standards Board which mostly consisted of chartered accountants.

Caplan commented: "I am delighted with the opportunity to work with ICAEW at this time of change for the institute.

“As chair, I want to ensure that ICAEW has a regulatory board in place that helps to maintain public confidence in ICAEW as a regulator and in the reputation of the accountancy profession more generally."