The furore over US pharmaceuticals giant Pfizer’s attempted takeover of UK rival AstraZeneca continues. AstraZeneca has now rejected Pfizer’s “final” offer, as it says the proposed deal “undervalues the…
- Emeritus Professor of Accounting, University of Essex, University of Essex
Business secretary Vince Cable has announced his intention to create a public register of UK company ownership in a bid to tackle tax evasion and money laundering by shady corporate bodies. But don’t believe…
What should we do with producers who routinely deliver faulty goods and services? Producers of cars, food, medicines, aeroplanes and even financial products are forced to compensate injured parties, recall…
Chancellor George Osborne has unveiled his fourth budget. The blueprint for recovery includes wholesale changes to pensions and savings, attempts to boost business investment, new relief for the costs…
In times of austerity, one of few things that seems to be booming is the trade in wheelbarrows. At least, company directors at major corporations will need them to collect vast amounts of remuneration…
In these insecure times people are easily persuaded to buy insurance for flights, cars, credit cards, loans, plumbing and almost anything else. But often customers find they haven’t got what they paid…
Iceland has sent four former directors of its bank Kaupthing to prison for fraud. But the chances of similar legal action happening in the UK are low, where fraud investigators have a poor record. The…
Tax avoidance shows no sign of abating. Google, the company with the slogan “Don’t be evil”, is at it again. The company has been named and shamed by the UK House of Commons’ Public Accounts Committee…
What are the chances that in the face of public criticisms, big business would curb its tax avoidance practices? Well, not much, as evidenced by a case decided by the US Court of Federal Claims. Salem…
The UK accountancy watchdog has barked. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has fined Deloitte & Touche £14 million for failures relating to the demise of MG Rover. The report says Deloitte was engaged…
Isn’t it interesting how governments go through the rituals of promoting competition, but little actually changes? The latest example is the UK Competition Commission’s report on the UK auditing industry…
The long awaited report on combating corporate tax avoidance by the OECD sadly has to deal with a corporate tax system which is unfit for purpose. It is a follow-up to the G8 meeting last month in Ireland…
The UK House of Commons Public Accounts Committee is examining some of the financial affairs of Prince Charles, heir to the British throne. The Committee should be concerned that the Duchy of Cornwall…
The G8 summit in Lough Erne was preceded by much hype and promises about action on tax avoidance and corporate secrecy, but it has delivered little. The leaders’ communiqué commits governments to nothing…
One of the recurring themes in social sciences is the “capture” of the state by economic elites. This enables them to advance their economic interests, shape public policies and choices. This is nowhere…
The Twitter age is about to chalk up its first success in the grey world of corporate accounting. It has been reported that the European Union will seek to make large companies disclose the taxes they…
The tax debate offers insight into the possible trajectories of capitalism. Organised tax avoidance does not create anything of social value, but encourages concentration of wealth in relatively few hands…
The outgoing Bank of England governor Mervyn King has presided over a huge economic crisis. His parting gift is the claim “a recovery is in sight” that the UK might achieve economic growth of even 1% this…
Evaluating the creditworthiness of countries is far from an exact science, yet the influence of credit ratings agencies is extraordinary. Recently, the UK government’s debt rating has been downgraded by…
Some four and-a-half years after the banking crisis that has resulted in massive public debt and a deep austerity program, the UK government has finally unveiled its Financial Services (Banking Reform…
The role of Barclays bank in manipulating the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) continues to dominate international financial media. The bank has already attracted fines from regulators in the UK and…
Executive remuneration is out of control in the United Kingdom. The final report by the High Pay Commission concluded that “there is rarely a link between directors’ incentives and the way a company performs…
Major proposals designed to reform Britain’s banking sector after its spectacular 2008 crash have been described as one of the biggest shakeups in a generation. But they are likely be inadequate for a…
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