The 5th meeting of the Indo-UK Task Force on Corporate Affairs was held here today. It was co-chaired by Shri R. Bandyopadhyay, Secretary, Ministry of Corporate Affairs and Shri Martin Donnelly, Permanent Secretary, Department of Business, Innovation and Skills, London.
The Task Force took stock of the ongoing cooperation between the two countries in the area of Corporate Affairs. It discussed issues such as promotion of Good Corporate Governance, Corporate Sustainability issues, promoting Audit Quality and Auditors Oversight, Collaboration and Mobility of Professionals and Qualifications, International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), and Mutually Recognized Agreements (MRAs).
Among other issues, the UK delegation made presentation on International Integrated Reporting Committee (IIRC), UK Regulatory Framework, Oversight and Quality Assurance of European Commission (draft) Decision on Equivalence of Third Country Auditors. The Indian side gave an overview of the current status and provisions of the new Companies Bill. The two sides also shared the roles and responsibilities of Independent Directors, and the ongoing debate as also the legislative provisions that are likely to emerge in the wake of the financial crisis and scams that have surfaced lately.
The two sides also gave an account of the ongoing cooperation between the professional institutions on both the sides with regard to the Mutually Recognized Agreements (MRAs) and the difficulties that they were experiencing while accessing each others’ market.
The Indo-UK Task Force was set up in 2006, with a view to promoting exchange of best practices in the field of corporate affairs and work out areas of mutual cooperation.
