Britain's auditors are under pressure. The combined weight of tighter regulation, more demanding corporate governance procedures, escalating incidence of big number litigation-and the commercial pressures of the market means that many, especially in the Big Four, are thinking seriously about which business they should be in. The audit profession, on the surface, between now and June will be lobbying - and lobbying hard - to persuade the government to introduce some form of proportionate liability for auditors. Auditors have seen the outright destruction of one of their number. Andersen went, not solely because of litigation and criminal prosecution, but rather the crippling damage to its professional reputation. Other Big Four firms now face litigation which could wipe them out completely. 'We have been trying to convince the government of the seriousness of the problem, says Peter Wyman, who is leading the ICAEW's lobbying on the issue.Wyman is a PricewaterhouseCoopers partner and he is also in charge of the efforts by the UK's largest firm to win the argument. Wyman is in a strong position as advocate. His year as institute president was dominated by the fight to emerge from Enron with the profession intact and in good grace.
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