• The likely practical effects of the forthcoming IFRS on leases (expected to be issued by end of 2015);
• The similarities and differences between the IASB’s requirements and those of the FASB.

The new IFRS will require companies to bring leases onto the balance sheet and result in important differences in the income statement which include reporting higher operating income compared with the current requirements and the FASB’s model.

The Project Update is available at www.ifrs.org and compares the current and new requirements.

Classification of Liabilities: The IASB has issued ED/2015/1 ‘Classification of Liabilities (Proposed amendments to IAS 1’). Submissions are requested by 10 June 2015.

The proposed amendments are designed to improve presentation in financial statements by clarifying the criteria for classifying a liability as either current or non-current. This will be achieved by:

1. Clarifying that the classification is based on the entity’s rights at the end of the reporting period; and
2. Clarifying the link between the settlement of the liability and the outflow of resources from the entity.

The proposals clarify that an entity must have a right to refinance or rollover a loan, or other form of debt, for at least 12 months after the reporting date for it to be classified as non-current, otherwise it must be classified as current.

{Feedback from members is welcome, in particular, the effects of the proposals on securitised borrowings}.

Disability Reporting: The GRI and Foundation ONCE have jointly published ‘Disability in Sustainability Reporting’ which is a guide to assist organisations to communicate their commitment to respecting and promoting the rights of people with disabilities.

This guide is designed to help organisations understand what activities can have an impact, whether positive or negative, on the rights of people with disabilities, and which GRI disclosures can be used as the basis for reporting on those impacts. It can enhance organisational understanding of the value of transparency on disability, in terms of creating inclusive workplaces, as well as taking advantage of the business case of disability for the development of new products, services and physical environments. The guide also features a number of case studies from businesses that are making commitments and working to improve their disability related impacts.

Insurance: The IASB has published an overview of its general model for insurance contracts without participation features and the IASB’s tentative decisions (www.ifrs.org). The IASB expects to issue a new IFRS after 2015.

Corporate Social Responsibility: The Initiative for Responsible Investment (IRI) has published an overview of recent requirements by government and stock exchanges from 44 jurisdictions related to corporate social responsibility disclosure (www.hausercenter.org/iri)

Accounting for Sustainability: The Prince of Wales Accounting for Sustainability project (A4S) has published four guides prepared by its CFO leadership network to assist the finance and accounting community address issues relating to integrating sustainability into their business processes and decisions. The guides, including case studies, deal with:

• natural and social capital accounting – an introduction for finance teams
• enhancing investor engagement – an introduction to integrating risks resulting from macro sustainability trends in business decision making
• managing future uncertainty – a practical guide for investor relations to engage on the drivers of sustainable value
• CAPEX – a practical guide to embedding sustainability into capital investment appraisal.

The guides are available at www.accountingforsustainability.org.

Taxation Reform