Called To Account

A jaw-dropping - and intimate - account by the woman who spent five years as the nation's watchdog of how much of the money needed for public services is misspent, while too many corporate giants get away without paying their fair share. As Chair of the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee from 2010- 2015 Margaret Hodge has been both the scourge of waste and inefficiency by successive governments. At the same time she has helped to disclose the chicanery of companies out to avoid tax. Fearing a summons before the inquisitor-in-chief, mandarins and chief executives quaked. Called To Account takes readers on a fascinating journey inside the NHS, the BBC and defence as well as Amazon, Starbucks and G4S. And comes to radical conclusions about how things must be improved. Hodge scrutinises: The weakness of tax authorities in tracking down corporate tax and forcing companies to pay up Massive failures in public procurement - from committing billions to buy 2 new aircraft carriers when there was no money in the budget; to the absurdity that police forces could cut the costs of their uniforms by over 30% - if only they could agree on how many pockets they need; to a study of 61 hospital trusts which showed they bought 21 different types of A4 paper, 652 different styles of surgical gloves and 1751 different cannulas. The disastrous introduction of Universal Credit, at a cost of £700 million. How a £500 million project to centralise 999 calls had to be abandoned. How officials move seamlessly into well-paid jobs in the private sector while company directors are appointed into positions in government. After the referendum, UK government needs to be fitter than ever before. And needs to secure maximum revenues. This conversational, witty and engaging book shines a light on some of the most fascinating and alarming issues facing us today and shows us the way forward - with salient and pragmatic solutions for the future.

Accounting fraud and how it has affected business practices both in the U.S. and internationally has never been of greater importance than it is now. Called to Account describes fourteen financial frauds that influenced the American public accounting profession and directly led to the development of accounting standards and legislation as practiced in the US today. This entertaining and educational look at these historic frauds helps enliven and increase understanding of auditing and forensic accounting for students. Chapters describe the tricks fraudsters such as "Crazy Eddie" Antar and "Chainsaw Al" Dunlap used to fool their auditors. Readers will learn how MiniScribe employees disguised packages of bricks as inventory; how Equity Funding personnel programmed the company’s computer to generate 64,000 phony life insurance policies; and how Enron inflated its profits by selling and then repurchasing money-losing assets. Complementing these chapters on high-profile crimes and criminals are chapters that trace the development of the public accounting profession and explain how each scandal shaped current accounting practices. Designed to complement dry, uninvolving auditing and advanced accounting texts with an engaging narrative, Called to Account also includes discussion questions and a useful chart which shows instructors and students how each chapter illustrates topics in leading accounting and auditing textbooks.

An idealistic young loan officer finds his true calling when a sorceress approaches him about starting a new bank. When an exiled monk arrives in town looking for a loan, the new bank might be his best bet, or worst option ever. In the midst of these deliberations is a retired accountant who must return to his homeland to negotiate on behalf of the bank and help a friend in need. But to be of any help at all, he will have to work with (or around) the last man he ever wanted to see again. Along the way, these four face threats from sorcerers, inept bureaucrats and nobles, and sometimes even their own allies. It's truly shocking how epic the world of banking can be.

Selected as an Outstanding Academic Title by Choice Magazine in 2014! Called to Account takes a broad perspective on how financial frauds have shaped the public accounting profession by focusing on cases of fraud around the globe. Ever entertaining and educational, the book traces the development of the accounting standards and legislation put in place as a direct consequence of these epic scandals. The new edition offers updated chapters on ZZZZ Best and Arthur Andersen, plus new chapters devoted to Parmalat, Satyam, and The Great Recession. Through stories like Barry Minkow’s staged constructions sites and MiniScribe’s fake inventory number generating computer program, "Cook Book", students will learn that fraud is nothing new, and that financial reform is heavily influenced by politics. With discussion questions and a useful chart showing instructors and students how each chapter illustrates the topics covered in other textbooks, Called to Account is the ideal companion for any class in auditing, advanced accounting or forensic accounting.

In a recent study of 61 hospitals, it was found that they bought 21 different types of A4 paper, 652 different kinds of surgical gloves and 1751 different cannulas. Police forces could cut the cost of their uniforms by over 30 per cent if they all bought the same one. But they disagree on how many pockets they need. Having committed to buy two new aircraft carriers, the MOD realised it didn't have the funds to buy them. The delayed delivery cost an additional £1.6 billion. We've spent £500 million on an abandoned project to centralise 999 calls, £3.5 billion on privatising the Work Programme, £700 million on implementing Universal Credit (used by 18,000 people), £20 billion on medical negligence claims, £70 billion (and counting) dealing with nuclear waste at Sellafield, and countless millions on IT investments in the BBC, the Home Office, the NHS . . . Waste is everywhere. Fighting against this waste is the Public Accounts Committee, which oversees some £700 billion of public spending every year. As its chair from 2010-15, Margaret Hodge knows the excesses of government bodies better than anyone. Conversational, witty, engaging and packed with anecdotes and insights about the biggest political figures of our time, Called to Account shines a light on some of the most fascinating - and alarming - issues that face Britain today.

The end of the cold war has paved the way for a series of moral claims that force institutions such as States, International Organizations of Multinationals to justify themselves. What is the effect of this phenomenon on the international relations of the 1990s and beyond.