EU beefs up independence of company audits  

In the continued effort to recreate confidence after international accounting scandals like Enron and Parmalat, the EU on 25 April adopted a new directive on the audit of company accounts, which specifying the duties of statutory auditors, their independence and ethics.

A central element is new requirements for external quality assurance with a view to ensuring better public oversight over the audit profession and improving co-operation between oversight bodies in the EU.

The directive also seeks to take account of international aspects. Thus, auditors from third countries that issue audit reports in relation to securities traded in the EU must be registered in the EU and be subject to member state systems of oversight.