Recent sustainability and integrated reporting developments

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08 Sep 2021

A summary of recent developments at G7, SSE, EFRAG/Shift, EFRAG, SASB, IRC, IFAC, CDSB, VBA, CAQ, CIPFA, EFAA, CapitalsCoalition, FRC, Swiss Federal Council, SGX, and Deloitte.

As part of the UK’s G7 2021 presidency, the UK government has set up an independent Impact Taskforce (ITF) to come up with solutions for a sustainable and inclusive recovery from the COVID-19 crisis. An announcement of the ITF and a list of members are available on the Global Steering Group for Impact Investment website.

The United Nations Sustainable Stock Exchanges (SSE) initiative has launched a new Action Plan to Make Markets Climate Resilient and a Model Guidance on Climate Disclosure. Both publications can be accessed on the SSE website.

The European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) announces that the EFRAG task force on European sustainability reporting standards and Shift have concluded a statement of cooperation benefiting from Shift’s experience in the human rights domain in the development of draft European sustainability reporting standards. Please see the EFRAG press release here.

EFRAG's task force on sustainability reporting has also released a working paper of the prototype for the climate standard they are working on. The paper is for information only and not open for public comments. Please click to access the paper here.

The Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) has published an eight-step guide to the SASB standards disclosure process. The guide was created to explain how one does practically accomplish releasing an initial SASB standards disclosure. Please click to access the guide on the SASB website.

The Integrated Reporting Committee (IRC) of South Africa has updated its Governance Information Paper for the changes in the revised IIRC Framework. It includes a new section, with examples, of the processes involved in the preparation an integrated report. Please click to access the paper here.

The International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) has releases a statement on climate change information and the 2021 reporting cycle noting that professional accountants have an active role to play in determining the way climate change information is reported in the upcoming 2021 reporting cycle and is enhanced in future years. Please click to access the statement here.

The Climate Disclosure Standards Board (CDSB) has released guidance and an online course to help companies disclose water-related financial information to investors. Please click for more information here.

The Value Balancing Alliance (VBA) has published a position paper on the standardisation of disclosure requirements. The paper can be accessed on the VBA website.

The Center for Audit Quality (CAQ) of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) has looked at the most recent publicly available ESG data for S&P 500 companies. They found that 95% of S&P 500 companies had detailed ESG information publicly available. Please click to see their findings here.

The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) has undertaken research that shows that more than half (56%) of public sector organisations do not currently report on their climate impact, i.e. the public sector lags behind the private sector on climate reporting. More information is available on the CIPFA website.

The European Federation of Accountants and Auditors for SMEs (EFAA) has published What SMPs and SMEs Need to Know About Sustainability Reporting. Please click to access the publication on the EFAA website.

The CapitalsCoalition is consulting on a methodology promoting standardised natural capital accounting for business. Comments are requested by 30 September. Please click for more information here.

The Financial Reporting Lab of the UK Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has published its latest project report on reporting on risks, uncertainties, opportunities and scenarios. It outlines what investors want to understand from corporate reporting on risks, uncertainties, opportunities and the use of scenarios. The report can be accessed here.

The Swiss Federal Council has decided on parameters for the future mandatory climate reporting by large Swiss companies. The Federal Department of Finance is to prepare a consultation draft by summer 2022. Please see the press release here.

The Singapore Exchange (SGX) is proposing a roadmap for climate-related disclosures to be made mandatory in issuers’ sustainability reports amid urgent demand for such information from lenders, investors and other key stakeholders. More information is available on the SGX website.

Deloitte has commented on the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosure (TCFD)’s June 2021 document Proposed Guidance on Climate-related Metrics, Targets, and Transition Plans. Please click to access our comment letter.

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