The Canadian government is pursuing this goal so that individuals with disabilities can feel more comfortable using public services and working for federally regulated organizations. The Accessible Canada Act and the Accessible Canada Regulations strive to achieve this by identifying, removing and preventing barriers in employment, buildings and other public spaces Non-compliance can lead to steep penalties for employers.

The Act, which took effect in 2019, defines a barrier as anything that "hinders the full and equal participation in society of persons with an impairment”.

Re­view news release on SHRM's website.

The supplemental guidance points to several key themes as organizations and practitioners work toward establishing and maintaining an effective system of internal control over financial and sustainable business information. Although ICSR is not yet well established in practice, the paper discusses crucial insights that can be gained from the experiences of those organizations that are leading the way. This new supplemental guidance is timely given upcoming final rules on climate risk from the SEC and ISSB. The guidance is global, and applies to accounting, reporting, and assurance.

Re­view the press release and the COSO-ICSR report on COSO's website.

In September 2022, CPAB released disclosure recommendations from its 2021 consultation, with two phases of changes. They enacted phase one in 2023 and plan to adjust their rules for phase two based on this consultation. Gaining insights from stakeholders holds a significant role in their policy-setting process. Comments received in this consultation will be considered together with feedback received in the 2021 consultation.

The public consultation process is scheduled to conclude on November 24, 2023.

Review the changes and access the consultation survey on the CPAB website.

Inspection results for all categories of firms showed mixed results. Some firms demonstrated strong improvements while others received significant inspection findings at a rate higher than CPAB’s target of 10 per cent. Consistent with the inspection insights published last fall, CPAB continues to observe that firms with strong systems of quality management are more likely to have fewer files with significant inspection findings.

In 2022, CPAB published recommendations on intended changes to the information it will disclose about the results of its oversight of participating firms that audit Canadian reporting issuers. These changes will be introduced in a phased approach. In the first phase, which was effective January 2023, CPAB started to disclose all significant enforcement actions arising from regulatory assessments.

Re­view the 2022 Annual Report on CPAB's website.

Among other things, the bill implements certain measures from Budget 2023, including significant changes to the mandatory disclosure rules in the Income Tax Act (the “act”). These proposals, first announced in Budget 2021, impose significant changes to the disclosure of certain tax transactions for both taxpayers and their advisors. The changes would be effective for reportable or notifiable transactions entered into after royal assent, which is expected prior to Parliament’s last sitting day, currently scheduled for June 30, 2023.

Re­view the article on Deloitte’s tax@hand website.

To access the 60-minute webinar recording on IESBA's web­site click here.

The Agenda items in­cluded:

• IESBA Strategy and Work Plan 2024-2027;
• Sustainability;
• Use of Experts;
• Public Interest Entity (PIE) rollout update;
• Abu Dhabi Accountability Authority (ADAA) - IESBA panel session;
• Emerging Issues and Outreach Committee (EIOC);
• IESBA/IAASB Coordination; and
• IESBA communications

The next IESBA meeting is scheduled for June 12-16, 2023, and will be held in New York, USA.

Re­view the high­lights sum­mary on the IESBA's web­site.

The Agenda items in­cluded:

• En­gage­ment Team – Group Au­dits In­de­pen­dence
• Sustainability
• Tax Plan­ning & Re­lated Ser­vices
• Technology Project
• Strat­egy & Work Plan (2024 – 2027)
• Technology Working Group
• Rollout of Revised Public Interest Entity (PIE) Definition

Re­view the high­lights sum­mary and pod­cast on the IESBA's web­site.

The proposed revisions respond to public interest concerns about tax avoidance and the role played by consultants, including professional tax advisers, in light of revelations in recent years such as the Paradise and Pandora Papers. The proposals strengthen the ethical expectations for professional accountants in business and in public practice when performing tax planning activities for employing organizations or providing tax planning services to clients, respectively.

Among other matters, the proposed ethical framework:

• Explains the types of threats to compliance with the fundamental ethics principles of the Code that might be created when professional accountants are involved in tax planning.
• Sets a clear principle that professional accountants recommend or otherwise advise on a tax planning arrangement only if they have determined that there is a credible basis in laws and regulations for it.
• Requires consideration of the reputational, commercial and wider economic consequences that could arise from the way stakeholders might view the tax planning arrangement before determining whether to proceed with the recommendation or advice.
• Provides practical guidance to assist professional accountants in navigating situations of uncertainty when carrying out tax planning.
• Deals with other practical matters, including disagreement with the client or management or those charged with governance, and documentation.

Review the press release and exposure draft on the IESBA's website.

The revised PIE provisions specify a broader list of categories of entities as PIEs whose audits should be subject to additional independence requirements to meet stakeholders’ heightened expectations concerning auditor independence when an entity is a PIE. The IESBA Staff has developed the jurisdictional PIE database as a resource to assist regulators, national standard setters, and other relevant bodies in developing or revising their definitions of PIE at the local level based on the IESBA’s PIE definition. This database covers 78 jurisdictions in the Americas, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Oceania.

The PIE revisions become effective for audits of financial statements for periods beginning on or after December 15, 2024. Early adoption is permitted and encouraged.

Re­view the database on the IESBA's web­site.