Our latest insights

With environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) and sustainability front of mind for all organisations and reporting requirements on the horizon, it’s important to understand what tax obligations are at play. As the ATO focuses on transparency and governance, it’s important to ensure tax obligations are appropriately incorporated in policies, frameworks, controls, and these are tested to ensure that the business is operating in line with the Group’s tax risk appetite.

We recently sat down with NSW Club leaders to discuss Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) considerations on the Club industry in the short to medium term. The International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) has now released their standard on Sustainability, and Treasury has sent a draft policy on how the standards will be adopted in Australia. Although there is no set guidance at this stage, it is most likely Clubs will need to adopt this standard in FY26.

As we approach the end of FY23 what are the key areas preparers of financial statements need to consider? Preparers of financial statements will breathe a sigh of relief to know there are no major changes to accounting standards applicable for FY23, however there are some amendments to existing standards to think about ahead of year end, as well as some on the horizon where early adoption may be worth considering.

While Net Zero targets have been on the agenda for years now, we’ve recently seen a rise in measures along the regulatory landscape. Across the globe, there’s been significant public and private investment to support and encourage sustainable practices, implement carbon policy, develop taxes on carbon footprint and plastic use, and more. In a rapidly changing regulatory environment where exporters need to adapt to new measures implemented across multiple jurisdictions, how can Australian businesses adapt? And what tax reforms can businesses expect domestically?

Biotechnology organisations often grapple with three key trends – where the next round of funding will come from, how to attract specialised talent to support vital innovation, and how to tackle manufacturing and scale up. They seek stability and certainty in funding to ensure projects are supported and reach their full potential. How can the upcoming Federal Budget announcement better support this sector?

We’re currently experiencing a veritable shopping list of headwinds – inflation, interest rates, labour costs, fuel prices, and supply chain challenges – applying pressure on businesses across all industries. The need to balance cost control with sustainable growth is a fine needle to thread, and not all businesses and costs are created equal. With so many cost control levers to pull, as a CFO, where do you begin?

Frances Carter has always been passionate about sustainability and the environment, and today she helps clients at Conservation Capital understand the importance of commercial conservation and why it is their responsibility to be corporate stewards.

In the fast-moving ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) movement, the last few years have seen a proliferation of sustainability reporting frameworks all intended to help organisations make meaningful disclosures in relation to sustainability and other non-financial information.