The agenda for the meeting (as at 12 May 2014*) is summarised below:

* The agenda was subsequently revised, details are available here.

Agenda papers for the meeting are available on the IASB's website.

The IASB issued the amendments to IFRS 11 Joint Arrangements on 6 May 2014. They are effective for annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2016, with earlier application being permitted. The updated status report indicates that final endorsement of the amendments for use in the European Union is currently expected in the first quarter of 2015.

The endorsement status report, dated 9 May 2014, is available here.

Mr Mackintosh opened his speech reflecting on today’s unique global economy and emphasised the need for internationally-accepted financial reporting standards. He noted that some of the advantages of such standards are (1) a lower cost to multinational companies with international subsidiaries, (2) the facilitation of the work of the regulatory community, and (3) a lower risk and cost of capital allocation.

After providing a brief example, Mr Mackintosh discussed the progress towards global accounting standards. He attributed the success of IFRS to "policymakers in countries [recognising] the compelling need to move to standardise on a globally consistent language for financial reporting." Mr Mackintosh stressed that the IASB's high-quality Standards are developed through an inclusive and transparent due process to meet the needs of its stakeholders.

Mr. Mackintosh went on to discuss the challenges of global accounting standards. He outlined the "three S's":

• Sovereignty in accounting standard-setting — Mr Mackintosh noted that global accounting standards require that all countries adhere to the standards and "resist the temptation to tinker with the standards." He spoke about the endorsement process and engagement outreach programs, ensuring that the IASB is not "passing down diktats from an ivory tower." He reiterated that countries' decisions not to adopt or amend or add a standard means that it is not a global standard anymore.
• Structure — Mr Mackintosh described the how the IASB's structure allows the Board the right balance of legitimacy and efficiency. He talked about the reasons the IASB was set up as a private-sector body and the oversight structure of the organisation.
• Standardisation — Mr Mackintosh explained the challenge of determining what the single, global standards should be. He said "This is significantly complicated by the multitude of different cultural preferences, business practices and accounting traditions that exist in different parts of the world, across the spectrum of developed and emerging economies." 

Please click for access to the full text of the speech on the IASB website.

The purpose of the Charter is to establish some key principles of co-operation between the IASB and other accounting standard-setters that are designed to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of international accounting standard-setting. The overarching principles of the Charter reflect that the parties involved are committed to work together (1) in close cooperation, while respecting each other's independence, (2) transparently and openly, (3) with mutual trust and respect, and (4) with a sense of duty, responsibility and accountability for achieving a shared goal in the public interest.

The Charter defines the following responsibilities:

The IASB stresses that the Charter is consistent with the creation in 2013 of the IASB's Accounting Standards Advisory Forum (ASAF), which serves as a formal platform for technical dialogue between the IASB and representatives of the accounting standard-setting community. The Charter also notes that it is a statement of co-operation that relies on the good faith and best endeavours of the parties and not a binding contractual arrangement.

At the recent IFASS meeting during which the Charter was agreed, the national standard-setters also finalised a 'Model for National Standard-Setters' that is designed to provide a basis for a national standard-setter to maximise its contribution to the quality of general purpose financial reporting by participating in the development of high-quality global accounting standards issued by the IASB. The model sets out concepts that should underlie the activity of accounting standard-setting and the key characteristics to which standard-setters might aspire. It is written primarily for standard-setters in jurisdictions have already adopted IFRSs or are in the process of doing so, but it is noted that the model can also be used by standard-setters in other fields and by bodies that monitor, fund or oversee a standard-setter in order to evaluate its activities.

Please click for the following additional information:

• Press release on the IASB website
• Full text of the Charter on the IASB website
• Paper describing the model for national standard-setters on the AASB website