Latest news with #AtulShah
Yahoo
14-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
P&O Ferries hires four-man firm after accounting fiasco
P&O Ferries has hired a four-person accountancy firm as its auditor after KPMG quit the account abruptly this year. Just Audit & Assurance, which describes itself as 'a specialist firm created to address the specialist needs of the smaller company and charity audits', will audit the ferry operator's accounts, which are overdue. Experts said the decision to appoint such a small auditor raised potential concerns over the financial health and governance standards of P&O Ferries. Atul Shah, a professor of accounting at City St George's, University of London, said: 'This is pure and simple opinion shopping, something which a public interest and regulated profession should strongly and publicly reprimand.' Notably, large corporations almost always use larger and more established firms to audit their accounts owing to the complexity of the work involved and the scale of the work required. Just Audit & Assurance, is based in Witney, Oxfordshire, and has just two partners and a total of four staff, according to Companies House filings. Of all the companies listed on the FTSE 100 index, just one used an accountancy firm outside of the 'big four' – Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC – to audit their accounts last year, Financial Reporting Council data show. P&O Ferries, which is owned by the Dubai-based ports and logistics giant DP World, was already months late in filing its financial statements for 2023 when KPMG quit as auditor in March, having worked with the company since 2007. Commenting on its resignation at the time, KPMG said it was 'not possible to complete an audit of the 2023 accounts to the required standard within management's desired timetable'. In a letter outlining its decision, KPMG said it believed it would be unable to audit the accounts in a timely manner as 'some of the drivers of that delay remain'. It comes following a torrid few years for P&O Ferries after it was attacked for sacking almost 800 seafarers via text message and replacing them with cheaper staff. Peter Hebblethwaite, P&O's chief executive, later admitted that he deliberately chose to ignore trade unions during the process, leading Labour to introduce legislation to protect jobs and wages in the maritime sector. Last year, the company's owner DP World clashed with the Government after Louise Haigh, the former transport secretary, called it a 'rogue operator'. Sir Keir Starmer disowned Ms Haigh's comments, declaring they were 'not the view of the Government', after DP World pulled out of a Labour-backed investment summit. Jonathan Russell, partner at Just Audit & Assurance said: 'Just because we're a small audit firm, it doesn't mean we'll do an inferior job.' He said he expects to charge lower fees than KPMG, at about £265,000. He said that alongside his four full-time employees, he also has access to 35 freelancers. P&O Ferries and KPMG declined to comment. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
13-06-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
P&O Ferries hires four-man firm after accounting fiasco
P&O Ferries has hired a four-person accountancy firm as its auditor after KPMG quit the account abruptly this year. Just Audit & Assurance, which describes itself as 'a specialist firm created to address the specialist needs of the smaller company and charity audits', will audit the ferry operator's accounts, which are overdue. Experts said the decision to appoint such a small auditor raised potential concerns over the financial health and governance standards of P&O Ferries. Atul Shah, a professor of accounting at City St George's, University of London, said: 'This is pure and simple opinion shopping, something which a public interest and regulated profession should strongly and publicly reprimand.' Notably, large corporations almost always use larger and more established firms to audit their accounts owing to the complexity of the work involved and the scale of the work required. Just Audit & Assurance, is based in Witney, Oxfordshire, and has just two partners and a total of four staff, according to Companies House filings. Of all the companies listed on the FTSE 100 index, just one used an accountancy firm outside of the 'big four' – Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC – to audit their accounts last year, Financial Reporting Council data show. Sacking of seafarers P&O Ferries, which is owned by the Dubai-based ports and logistics giant DP World, was already months late in filing its financial statements for 2023 when KPMG quit as auditor in March, having worked with the company since 2007. Commenting on its resignation at the time, KPMG said it was 'not possible to complete an audit of the 2023 accounts to the required standard within management's desired timetable'. In a letter outlining its decision, KPMG said it believed it would be unable to audit the accounts in a timely manner as 'some of the drivers of that delay remain'. It comes following a torrid few years for P&O Ferries after it was attacked for sacking almost 800 seafarers via text message and replacing them with cheaper staff. Peter Hebblethwaite, P&O's chief executive, later admitted that he deliberately chose to ignore trade unions during the process, leading Labour to introduce legislation to protect jobs and wages in the maritime sector. 'Rogue operator' Last year, the company's owner DP World clashed with the Government after Louise Haigh, the former transport secretary, called it a 'rogue operator'. Sir Keir Starmer disowned Ms Haigh's comments, declaring they were 'not the view of the Government', after DP World pulled out of a Labour-backed investment summit. Jonathan Russell, partner at Audit & Assurance said: 'Just because we're a small audit firm, it doesn't mean we'll do an inferior job.' He said he expects to charge lower fees than KPMG, at about £265,000. He said that alongside his four full-time employees, he also has access to 35 freelancers.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
P&O Ferries hires four-man firm after accounting fiasco
P&O Ferries has hired a four-person accountancy firm as its auditor after KPMG quit the account abruptly this year. Just Audit & Assurance, which describes itself as 'a specialist firm created to address the specialist needs of the smaller company and charity audits', will audit the ferry operator's accounts, which are overdue. Experts said the decision to appoint such a small auditor raised potential concerns over the financial health and governance standards of P&O Ferries. Atul Shah, a professor of accounting at City St George's, University of London, said: 'This is pure and simple opinion shopping, something which a public interest and regulated profession should strongly and publicly reprimand.' Notably, large corporations almost always use larger and more established firms to audit their accounts owing to the complexity of the work involved and the scale of the work required. Just Audit & Assurance, is based in Witney, Oxfordshire, and has just two partners and a total of four staff, according to Companies House filings. Of all the companies listed on the FTSE 100 index, just one used an accountancy firm outside of the 'big four' – Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC – to audit their accounts last year, Financial Reporting Council data show. P&O Ferries, which is owned by the Dubai-based ports and logistics giant DP World, was already months late in filing its financial statements for 2023 when KPMG quit as auditor in March, having worked with the company since 2007. Commenting on its resignation at the time, KPMG said it was 'not possible to complete an audit of the 2023 accounts to the required standard within management's desired timetable'. In a letter outlining its decision, KPMG said it believed it would be unable to audit the accounts in a timely manner as 'some of the drivers of that delay remain'. It comes following a torrid few years for P&O Ferries after it was attacked for sacking almost 800 seafarers via text message and replacing them with cheaper staff. Peter Hebblethwaite, P&O's chief executive, later admitted that he deliberately chose to ignore trade unions during the process, leading Labour to introduce legislation to protect jobs and wages in the maritime sector. Last year, the company's owner DP World clashed with the Government after Louise Haigh, the former transport secretary, called it a 'rogue operator'. Sir Keir Starmer disowned Ms Haigh's comments, declaring they were 'not the view of the Government', after DP World pulled out of a Labour-backed investment summit. Jonathan Russell, partner at Audit & Assurance said: 'Just because we're a small audit firm, it doesn't mean we'll do an inferior job.' He said he expects to charge lower fees than KPMG, at about £265,000. He said that alongside his four full-time employees, he also has access to 35 freelancers. P&O Ferries and KPMG declined to comment. Sign in to access your portfolio
Telegraph
05-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Strip baby penguins of English names, demand Indian nationalists
Three baby penguins in a Mumbai zoo must be stripped of their English names and given local ones instead, India's ruling BJP party has demanded. Leaders of the Right-wing Hindu nationalist party, led by Narendra Modi, the prime minister, said three-month-old Noddy, Tom and Pingu were born in the state of Maharashtra and should therefore have Marathi names. 'These chicks were born here, on our soil. They should reflect the Marathi identity. So why can't the penguins have a Marathi name?' Atul Shah, a BJP spokesman, told The Telegraph. He said the party had suggested three alternative names to zoo authorities – Adu, Sanju and Teju – and added: 'It's a reasonable demand, and we are confident that they will accept it.' Nitin Bankar, a local BJP leader, said he had written to authorities at the Byculla zoo where the penguins are kept at least twice a week since they were named in April. This week, he led a protest outside the zoo, where demonstrators were seen holding penguin cutouts with red crosses over their disputed names. Mr Bankar warned that the protests could continue and said he would try to have the zoo shut down if the chicks were not given Marathi names within 10 days. Despite initial concerns that penguins would not survive India's heat, the birds have become a major attraction since the zoo acquired eight Humboldt penguins from South Korea in 2016. Zoo authorities have received praise for successfully breeding penguin chicks, which have so far been given English names such as Flipper, Daisy, Bubble, Mr Molt and Dory. The birds are monogamous and known for their lifelong pair bond with Mr Molt, the youngest male, and Flipper, the oldest female, becoming the zoo's most celebrated couple. The penguins are kept within a climate-controlled 1,800 sq ft enclosure fitted with surveillance cameras, rocky terrain, synthetic ponds, and ice features. Most other animals at the zoo have been given names of Indian origin. The penguin controversy comes as political parties gear up for the upcoming municipal elections in Mumbai, which have often been fought over cultural identity issues.
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
P&O Ferries auditor quits after accounting fiasco
P&O Ferries' auditor has quit after nearly two decades following years of late financial filings and the controversial sacking of UK workers. KPMG, which has audited the ferry group since 2007, has resigned from its role auditing the company's accounts with immediate effect, according to a Companies House filings. The move raises further questions for the Dover-Calais operator, which is already months late in producing financial statements for 2023. The company only submitted accounts for 2022 last December. Sources indicated that KPMG took the decision unilaterally and that it was not part of the rotation policy that can see UK companies change auditors every few years. It is understood that the ferry operator has already appointed a replacement auditor to work on the accounts, though it has not named the firm concerned. A spokesman for P&O said: 'We thank KPMG for their services as our auditors. P&O Ferries is focused on filing our 2023 accounts as soon as possible.' Atul Shah, a professor of accounting and finance at City St. George's, University of London, said: 'The fact that KPMG will not now be signing off on the 2023 accounts raises a number of questions about the reasons for the resignation.' P&O, which is owned by Dubai-based ports and logistics giant DP World, faced a political backlash three years ago after sacking almost 800 seafarers via text message and replacing them with cheaper staff. Peter Hebblethwaite, P&O's chief executive, later admitted that he deliberately chose to ignore trade unions during the process, leading Labour to introduce legislation to protect jobs and wages in the maritime sector. Last year, DP World also threatened to halt £1bn of spending on London Gateway port, which it also owns, after Louise Haigh, the then transport secretary, called for a boycott of P&O's services. Sir Keir Starmer, who had planned to make the project a centrepiece of his investment summit, was forced to intervene, stating that Ms Haigh's stance was 'not the view of the Government'. KPMG was originally hired as P&O's auditor in 2007, the year after its parent was bought by DP World for close to £4bn. P&O's 2022 filings revealed that loans from DP World swelled to more than £400m since the seafarer sackings, with the company turning to its state-backed owner three times for support. The company nevertheless argued that the accounts confirmed that it would have faced certain collapse if the mass lay-offs had been delayed. While P&O has said that it is 'on the path to operational profitability,' the legal changes in the UK, together with others in France, may push up costs again by making it all but impossible for the company to rely on seafarers brought in from Asia. KPMG declined to comment. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Sign in to access your portfolio
