A few weeks back I wrote a blog about comments made by Chas Roy-Chowdhury, head of taxation at Britain's Association of Chartered Certified Accountants that I found quite unacceptable. In doing so I noted the following:
I am a member of the ACCA's research committee, in which context I meet Chas Roy-Chowdhury. I am not a member of the ACCA.
So troubling did I find Roy-Chowdhury's comments that I wrote to the ACCA asking if they reflected its policy and saying that if they did that I would have to consider my future position on the ACCA research committee.
I have now had a response, accepting my resignation (although I had not actually offered it, as such). The conclusion is obvious: Roy-Chowdhury's comments do reflect ACCA policy.
I have to say I am saddened by this. He himself has often told me he thinks I am an extreme left winger. All that proves, I have told him, is just how right-wing he is, for the comments I make and many of the suggestions I propose are reflected in the policies of all three of the UK's main political parties on occasion. Those he proposes on behalf of the ACCA could be proposed by a political party in the UK that was seriously expecting to enjoy a democratic mandate. In that sense he occupies the same space as the Taxpayer's Alliance.
Is this really where one of the UK's main professional bodies should be? It's very worrying if it is, because it puts itself far outside the spectrum of reasoned debate on viable taxation policies that professional people should engage with if that is the case.
I'm disappointed by having had my resignation accepted. I'm much more disappointed by the action of the ACCA in failing to curtail the clear exploitation of its status by one of its employees for the advancement of his own political opinions.
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I’m troubled but not surprised by this turn of events. I have always found Chas to be very personable and we attended many meetings together when I was Chairman of the ICAEW’s Tax Faculty (2003-2005).
Chas is an absolute master at generating media friendly quotes and I’m aware of many ICAEW members who would like the ICAEW to be quoted as often as is the ACCA (through Chas).
It always seemed to me that Chas had carte blanche to pronounce views on behalf of ACCA. So far as I could tell he is trusted to provide quotable quotes without having to first ensure that they are in accordance with any ACCA policy. That seems to be his role. He’s the face of tax for ACCA and generates much valued PR for that body and its members.
Many people view Chas as others might view a media friendly politician. Good company and good for a soundbite but not necessarily someone to take too seriously as a communicator of the party’s real policies and positions.
As regards the acceptance of your resignation I tend to assume that there are far more cockups than conspiracies in the world. It may be too late now but I imagine they have lost more through their actions than they would have done had you been persuaded to stay.
Sadly Richard, He has a point.
Governments have to run a fair level of taxation and not create a large level of jobs in the public sector on larger levels of pay and pensions than in the private sector as is currently the case in the UK.
If thats the case, people are going to try many schemes to avoid high taxes, as they amount to theft from the private unpensioned employee to the public sector employee.
Taxation should be there to provide the primary aims of a society – as in the primary needs of a tribe – thats is defense, welfare, education of members and common property (enviroment, law and justice costs, roads etc..)
We have moved far away from this basic successful model, and into the realms of make work and bumper public sector pay which is destroying our currency, and our living standards and means ID cards to ensure taxation to fund all this are around the corner.
Hi Richard,
ACCA lacks morals and ethics and no independent voices on its council.
Ballots for council elections are routinely rigged through a device knows as “delegated proxy voting”, which enables presidents to cast thousands of votes and ensure that their coronies get in. Members are not allowed to elect president, deputy president or vice-president. AGMs are a sham. There is no AOB or votes on subscription increases of less than 5%. There is no disclosure of the contributions to IFAC or even the losses made on the in-house magazine. Unlike companies, ACCA members can’t vote to director salries. Number of directors have mushroomed to over 10 and their gravy train can’t be derailed by members.
Over 60% of ACCA membership is outside the UK and 50% of the UK membership is non-white. Yet the leadership is entirely white European.
When I spoke up against the thoroughly unethical practices, the ACCA Chief executive wrote to my Vice-Chancellor, without my knowledge, and urged him to silence me. He told them where to go and the episode also resulted ina Eadly Day Motion condemning the ACCA in the House of Commons.
ACCA jumps on any bandwagon for publicity. The latest is the claim is that it teaches ethics – I only wish its controlelrs knew what ethics are. Here is an example of an answer to a case study published ina book that carries ACCA approval and for which ACCA colelcts royalties from its students. The example comes from paper P3 ? Business Analysis. The scenario covered in the “Digwell” case study involves a mining firm being granted permission to work at a site where ‘rare birds have recently settled on undisturbed cliffs’, but where the local population suffer from high unemployment. Students are asked to discuss the ethical issues this raises, and the interest of various stakeholders.
The prescribed answer is:
‘Environmental pressure groups are amongst the worst offenders here, and it is well to be aware of the threat they constitute to some legitimate business operations’.
‘Some local residents are concerned about traffic and noise. These are presumably the ones who have jobs already’.
‘Environmentalist groups tend to object to any development on principle and to manipulate public opinion unscrupulously.’
‘The views of the anti-capitalist groups may be dismissed without further ado and the advice of London’s police sought’.
Don’t expect ACCA to feel any shame as it is shameless.
‘the spectrum of reasoned debate on viable taxation policies’.
Would you set out your view of taxation policies, and levels, and give us a start on a reasoned debate? Taxation and its levels is a focal point of political choice now. It’s not ‘the economy, stupid’ it’s ‘taxation, stupid’ that matters.
Or if it doesn’t engage you, would you point to some internet accessible-to-all sources for reading up about political issues in taxation matters?
Prem
That is profoundly shocking.
Do you have links to the originals of the documents you quote or a reference so that more publicity can be given to this?
Richard
[…] Tax Research UK / The ACCA – an organisation worth quitting – Bloody hell! Ask a question and be told your resignation is accepted? Someone has messed up here big time. […]