ACCA calls for standards on sustainable development

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) has compiled a report to be presented at the Johannesburg Earth Summit arguing for greater responsibility for accountancy practises in the pursuit of sustained development.

The report, which was requested by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), revealed that there are currently no international financial reporting or auditing standards that deal explicitly with sustainability issues.

The report also found that, despite professionals being well placed to argue the business case for sustainable development, they are seldom involved in making the business case for environmental or sustainability management initiatives.

The report contains a comprehensive review of the UK profession's involvement in social, environmental and sustainability accounting, auditing and reporting developments in the 10 years since Earth Summit 1.

Among the ACCA recommendations are calls for global accounting standard setters to produce international financial reporting or auditing standards which deal explicitly with sustainability accounting, reporting and auditing issues.

Environmental cost and liability disclosures (environmental financial accounting) should also be included in the annual reports and accounts of public companies, and social, environmental and sustainability reporting issues should be integrated into the education and training regimes of professional accountancy bodies.

Rachel Jackson, ACCA's Head of Environmental and Social Issues, said: "As accountants are involved in all aspects of business life, they are uniquely well placed to promote social, environmental and sustainability issues and to provide guidance and leadership in this area.

"ACCA's recommendations are designed to provide a framework for accountants' involvement with sustainable development, which will take the profession forward to Earth Summit 3 in 2012."

(GMcG)