Ballot opens on combined institute

22 Sep 05
Voting will begin this week on proposals to create a 140,000-strong accountancy institute covering the public and private sectors.

23 September 2005

Voting will begin this week on proposals to create a 140,000-strong accountancy institute covering the public and private sectors.

Plans to merge CIPFA and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales are being put to the members of both organisations. Ballot papers for the vote, together with a document setting out the details of the plan, were sent to CIPFA's 13,500 members on September 23. The ICAEW's 126,000 members will receive their ballot papers shortly.

Ian Morris, the president of the ICAEW, told Public Finance that a combined institute would enjoy unrivalled expertise across both public and private sectors and would be in a stronger position to command the attention of legislators.

'We would be strengthened by joining our reputations,' Morris said. 'Integration would increase influence with government, not just in the UK but also in Brussels and the US.'

His words were echoed by CIPFA's president, Diane Colley, who said the proposal, if approved, would deliver real benefits for the institute and its members.

'It is an opportunity for us to be a founder member of an institute that will clearly be prestigious in the UK, and also a hugely influential player in the profession globally,' she said. 'It's critically important for public finance to be at the heart of this new organisation, so that the combined institute has expertise that spans the whole of the economy.'

CIPFA members now have four weeks to return their ballot papers in the post before the deadline of October 21. Alternatively, members can vote in person at a Special General Meeting being held on October 25 at the Guildhall in London.

Two-thirds of the votes cast by each of the institutes' members must be in favour of the integration for the plan to go ahead.

Morris urged all CIPFA and ICAEW members to study the proposals carefully and then use their votes. 'They need to understand that there will be no watering down of one institute by joining with the other. My message to all members is vote, but do so on an informed basis.'

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