The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) is the peak body responsible for overseeing the effectiveness of the financial reporting system in Australia. Audit quality is integral to the effectiveness of the financial reporting system and accordingly the FRC has a strategic priority to monitor the quality of audits carried out by Australian auditors.
Regulators in Australia and internationally continue to identify areas in which they believe audit quality can be improved. Whilst the most recent Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) Audit Inspection findings showed a slight improvement, they also reinforce that further work is required.
In recognising that ASIC inspection findings are one indicator of audit quality, and that this is a multi-dimensional concept, the FRC, in conjunction with the Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (AUASB), are engaging with key stakeholders to understand their perspectives on audit quality in Australia.
As the objective of an external audit is to provide confidence to investors in the quality of financial reports, their views are vitally important. To facilitate this we have conducted a survey to gather professional investors’ perspectives on audit quality, the value of audit, and the factors that influence these. This report details the results of this survey.