| Abstract: | The development of codes of corporate governance in the UK can be criticized on two grounds: first, that the process has been, to a large extent, ad hoc; and second, that the codes of corporate governance lack an enforcement mechanism. To remedy these problems this paper considers the desirability of establishing a permanent framework for the regulation of corporate governance of UK listed companies, and whether such a framework might be linked to the regulation of accounting and audit. Three possible models for the regulation of UK listed company audit (an Auditing Council, a Commission for Audit, and a UK SEC), which might also include the regulation of corporate governance, are developed. The results of a study, using postal questionnaires and interviews designed to elicit the views of primary and secondary stakeholders and influential onlookers, as to the desirability of including corporate governance within the proposed models for the regulation of listed company audit, are reported. The findings suggest only limited support for corporate governance regulation to be assumed by an audit regulatory body. However, of those supporting reform, oversight by an independent body with statutory powers, such as a UK SEC, received greatest support. |
