The House of Lords recently undertook a review of the role of auditors in the run-up to the 2008 financial crisis. The report was damning, and rightly so.

Now the government has responded and the House of Lords aren't, overall enamoured with the response. As they note, in particular:

We were surprised by the Government's denial that IFRS accounting standards had reduced   prudence in audit. The Committee's report concluded that IFRS has limited auditors' scope to exercise prudent judgment. Auditors' traditional, prudent scepticism must be promoted, whatever the accounting standards.

Too true: and it will get worse, as I have explained today.