Accountants praise government for promising action – but more still to be done

• In the first 100 days the government has taken some positive steps but significant barriers to economic growth and increased productivity remain
• Proposals to late payments, corporate governance regulation, and local authority audit backlog all welcomed as announcements

As Keir Starmer’s Labour party celebrates 100 days in office, global accountancy body ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) calls on the UK government to stay focused on the key priorities to boost economic performance and business growth, and to be clear on this vision to boost optimism.

Just over three months since Labour’s decisive victory at the 5 July General Election, ACCA is encouraging the new government to stick to its priorities of putting economic growth at the heart of its agenda for the country.

Glenn Collins, head of technical and strategic engagement at ACCA UK, said: “We have seen some encouraging signs that the new government’s Treasury and business team understand the worries of the business sector and the concerns that we hear consistently from our 100,000 UK based members.

“We want them to build on the foundations that they have set out and we will continue to hold them to account.”

ACCA reports that members support the government’s emphasis on growing the economy, and ACCA welcomes moves over the first 100 days including:

• Action on late payment which ACCA has consistently called out as a blight on the growth prospects of small business.
• The appointment of a government minister as chair of HMRC board. ACCA hopes James Murray’s appointment will result in further investment in HMRC and strengthen delivery, particular around HMRC service levels which continue to be a major drag on business effectiveness.

• The King’s speech announcement of long promised regulation on corporate governance including placing the planned new regulator, the Audit, Reporting and Governance Authority (ARGA), on a statutory footing and setting out clear expectations and accountability for boards, management and auditors.

Lloyd Powell, head of ACCA Cymru/Wales added: “The government needs to build on progress to date and to build confidence. Business confidence is low with many highlighting uncertainty and challenges in their day-to-day work. We feel the government has a critical month ahead to provide to business insight on industrial strategy at the upcoming International Investment Summit, and to see this clarified further at the Autumn Budget.”

Visit ACCA’s website for more information.