English ICA members speak out against JMU discipline
Over-zealous disciplinary measures and excessive punishment handed out by the Joint Monitoring Unit have angered chartered accountants in the South East, according to local officials.
They claim that English ICA members are threatening to register their firms with ACCA unless the JMU revises the way it conducts its investigations.
Tony Bennewith, a member of the South Eastern Society of Chartered Accountants and an institute member since June, said the overwhelming number of members who responded to a survey of attitudes to the JMU said they had been ‘left feeling aggrieved’.
‘The length of the disciplinary process has caused concern,’ said Bennewith.
‘They are angry at being punished because their paperwork is not quite right, rather than for incidents which leave clients out of pocket.’
The volume of complaints against the JMU comes at a crucial time for the institute council, which is grappling with widespread criticism of the monitoring and disciplinary process.
If complaints continue, commented one institute official, there could be mass defections to ACCA. Bennewith said one 15-partner firm based in Surrey had chosen to register with ACCA and a 14-partner firm is thinking of following suit.
