In the paper the ICAEW provides a review of the current state of the assurance market and invites comments on five propositions on where and how it feels assurance should be taken next.

The propositions, which are expanded upon in the paper, are:

1. Rather than focusing on the annual report – or any other single report of an organisation – we should think about the right way to use assurance to meet the needs of the organisation itself.
2. The role of the board in determining the need for assurance, internally and externally, is vital to understanding the future of assurance.
3. Getting the right assurance in the right place is essential. This means asking the right questions about risks and information flows, and in a complex organisation it means keeping track of the situation with an assurance map.
4. Assurance can be provided over risk disclosures or forward-looking information, even if the question asked is different from ‘is this true and fair?'.
5. Assurance can add value to narrative information using current principles and techniques, and the skilled judgement of preparers and assurance providers.

Comments on the paper are invited until 22 July 2016.

The thought leadership paper and details of how to comment are available on the ICAEW website.