AUASB Issues New Standard on Controls Assurance

The AUASB has issued Standard on Assurance Engagements - ASAE 3150 - Assurance Engagements on Controls (January 2015), which relates to controls assurance.

ASAE 3150 requires the assurance practitioner to conclude on the suitability of the design of controls to achieve identified control objectives for every engagement.

ASAE 3150 is operative for assurance engagements commencing on or after 1 January 2016, with early adoption permitted.

New ASX Corporate Governance Principles Released

The ASX Corporate Governance Council has released Corporate Governance Principles and Recommendations - 3rd edition (27 March 2014).  The Third Edition incorporates nine new substantive recommendations, which suggest that a listed entity should:

• undertake appropriate checks before appointing a person, or putting forward to security holders a candidate for election, as a director, as well as provide all material information to security holders relevant to a decision on electing a director;
• "have a written agreement with each director and senior executive setting out the terms of their appointment";
• ensure that its company secretary "be accountable directly to the board, through the chair, on all matters to do with the proper functioning of the board";
• "have a program for inducting new directors and provide appropriate professional development opportunities for directors";
• "ensure that its external auditor attends its [annual general meeting] and is available to answer questions from security holders relevant to the audit";
• "provide information about itself and its governance to investors via its website";
• "give security holders the option to receive communications from, and send communications to, the entity and its security registry electronically";
• disclose certain information about its internal audit function or, if it does not have such a function, disclose "the processes it employs for evaluating and continually improving the effectiveness of its risk management and internal control processes"; and
• "disclose whether it has any material exposure to economic, environmental and social sustainability risks and, if it does, how it manages those risks".