I am pleased to announce the appointment and reappointments of the Chair of the Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (AUASB) and part-time members of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC).
The AUASB is an independent statutory agency, responsible for developing, issuing and maintaining auditing and assurance standards under the Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act 2001 (ASIC Act).
Ms Merran Kelsall has been reappointed as the chair of AUASB and as a part-time member of the FRC.
Ms Kelsall has been the Chairman of AUASB since 2004. She has overseen a number of reforms and initiatives, including the restructuring of the AUASB under the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997 and the redrafting of the entire suite of the Australian Auditing Standards in Clarity format. She originally qualified as a chartered accountant and practised in the profession for 20 years, including 10 years as a partner at BDO. She has considerable directorship and corporate governance experience, including working in audit, risk and compliance committees. She has a particular interest in aligning performance management with corporate strategy.
The FRC is the peak body responsible for overseeing the effectiveness of the financial reporting framework in Australia. Its key functions include the oversight of the accounting and auditing standard setting processes for the public and private sectors, providing strategic advice in relation to the quality of audits conducted by Australian auditors, and advising the Minister on these and related matters to the extent that they affect the financial reporting framework in Australia.
The FRC has a wide range of stakeholders including a broad spectrum of preparers and users of financial statements, the Commonwealth as well as State and Territory governments, and other government bodies such as standard setters and regulators. Key stakeholder bodies are represented on the FRC as members. In addition, the Australian and New Zealand governments have established cross-appointment arrangements to promote closer economic relationships between the two countries. The FRC accordingly has a New Zealand representative as a one of its members.
Mr John Price has been appointed as a part-time member of the FRC as the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) representative.
Mr Price has been an ASIC Commissioner since March 2012, and is a current member of the Council of Financial Regulators, the coordinating body for Australia's main financial regulatory agencies. He is a member of CAMAC, the independent statutory body that provides advice to the Government on law reform matters (including on matters related to financial reporting). He is also a member of ASIC's own audit committee.
Mr Ian Laughlin has been re-appointed as a part-time member of the FRC as the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) representative.
Mr Laughlin has served as a Member of APRA since 2010 and on 1 July 2013, he will commence as Deputy Chair. Mr Laughlin is APRA's representative on the FRC and the Executive Committee of the International Association of Insurance Supervisors. He is a qualified actuary with extensive private sector experience in the financial services industry, particularly in the insurance industry.