INTHEBLACK July 2022 - Magazine - Page 6
FROM THE DESK
// M E R R A N K E L S A L L F C PA
WORKING
WITH
GOVERNMENTS
Welcome to the July issue of INTHEBLACK.
The start of the 2022-2023 financial year sees
a new government in Australia, following the
recent national election. CPA Australia’s Policy
and Advocacy experts discussed the outcome
and implications for accounting professionals
and businesses in a special edition of our With
Interest podcast.
One question addressed in this episode is
whether, from a practical perspective, a change of
government really changes anything with regard
to CPA Australia’s policy and advocacy work. This
question is equally relevant in any of the markets in
which we operate across the globe, and the answer
is “no”.
We always work with the government of the
day on issues of importance to members. We have
established relationships with politicians of various
political persuasions. This was evidenced by the
appearance of ministers from both major political
parties on With Interest during the Australian
election campaign.
Of course, we will still need to build relationships
with new politicians and strengthen our existing
relationships. The election outcome also means
the policy “dial” has shifted on several issues that
members tell us are important to them, such as
climate change and sustainability reporting, to
name just two. We’ll need to make our policy
positions on these important areas clear to the
new government.
In the meantime, we will continue to work on
our global program of policy and advocacy work.
Broadly, the central themes of this program are:
•
Transforming business
•
Sustainability and society
•
Evolving a digital society
•
A prosperous global economy
In the area of tax, this work incorporates our
survey of transfer pricing for small-and-medium
6 ITB July 2022
“The election outcome
also means the policy
“dial” has shifted on
various issues that
members tell us are
important to them,
such as climate change
and sustainability
reporting, to name just
two. We’ll need to
make our policy
positions on these
important areas clear
to the new
government.”
enterprises across the Asia-Pacific. Beginning in
Vietnam, we have started presenting the preliminary
results of this survey at member events in a range of
different markets.
Another area where we are actively engaging is
the Australian Government’s Quality of Financial
Advice review. The final report of the review is due
in December. There are a great many issues that are
still unresolved, involving the regulation of financial
advice and regulatory burden imposed on advisers.
We are aware of the ongoing impacts on members.
In addition to direct advocacy, we are collaborating
with 10 other associations that share our concerns
and desire for reform.
Merran Kelsall FCPA, CPA Australia president and chairman