你必须要知道的大学期间必备的十佳证书

正确答案：
4 Becker & Co
(a) Joint business arrangement
The business opportunity in respect of Murray Co could be lucrative if the market research is to be believed.
However, IFAC’s Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants states that a mutual business arrangement is likely to give rise
to self-interest and intimidation threats to independence and objectivity. The audit firm must be and be seen to be independent
of the audit client, which clearly cannot be the case if the audit firm and the client are seen to be working together for a
mutual financial gain.
In the scenario, two options are available. Firstly, Becker & Co could provide the audit client with finance to complete the
development and take the product to market. There is a general prohibition on audit firms providing finance to their audit
clients. This would create a clear financial self-interest threat as the audit firm would be receiving a return on investment from
their client. The Code states that if a firm makes a loan (or guarantees a loan) to a client, the self-interest threat created would
be so significant that no safeguard could reduce the threat to an acceptable level.
The provision of finance using convertible debentures raises a further ethical problem, because if the debentures are ultimately
converted to equity, the audit firm would then hold equity shares in their audit client. This is a severe financial self-interest,
which safeguards are unlikely to be able to reduce to an acceptable level.
The finance should not be advanced to Murray Co while the company remains an audit client of Becker & Co.
The second option is for a joint venture company to be established. This would be perceived as a significant mutual business
interest as Becker & Co and Murray Co would be investing together, sharing control and sharing a return on investment in
the form. of dividends. IFAC’s Code of Ethics states that unless the relationship between the two parties is clearly insignificant,
the financial interest is immaterial, and the audit firm is unable to exercise significant influence, then no safeguards could
reduce the threat to an acceptable level. In this case Becker & Co may not enter into the joint venture arrangement while
Murray Co is still an audit client.
The audit practice may consider that investing in the new electronic product is a commercial strategy that it wishes to pursue,
either through loan finance or using a joint venture arrangement. In this case the firm should resign as auditor with immediate
effect in order to eliminate any ethical problem with the business arrangement. The partners should carefully consider if the
potential return on investment will more than compensate for the lost audit fee from Murray Co.
The partners should also reflect on whether they want to diversify to such an extent – this investment is unlikely to be in an
area where any of the audit partners have much knowledge or expertise. A thorough commercial evaluation and business risk
analysis must be performed on the new product to ensure that it is a sound business decision for the firm to invest.
The audit partners should also consider how much time they would need to spend on this business development, if they
decided to resign as auditors and to go ahead with the investment. Such a new and important project could mean that they
take their focus off the key business i.e. the audit practice. They should consider if it would be better to spend their time trying
to compete effectively with the two new firms of accountants, trying to retain key clients, and to attract new accounting and
audit clients rather than diversify into something completely different.

正确答案：
(b) An illustration of each of the problems using the data from the Battamould division/TRG scenario is as follows:
Meeting only the lowest targets
– In the scenario, the budgeted variable cost of $200 per tonne has been agreed. There is no specific incentive for the
Bettamould division to try to achieve a better level of performance.
Using more resources than necessary
– In the scenario, the current budget allows for 5% machine idle time. There is evidence that a move to outsourcing
machine maintenance from a specialist company could help reduce idle time levels and permit annual output in excess
of 100,000 tonnes.
Making the bonus – whatever it takes
– At present, the only sanction/incentive is to achieve 100,000 tonnes of output. There is no mention of any sanction for
example, if processing losses (and hence costs) rise to 20% of material inputs.
Competing against other divisions, business units and departments
– At present, the Bettamould division sources its materials from chosen suppliers who have been used for some years.
There is evidence that materials of equal specification could be sourced for 40% of the annual requirement from another
TRG division which has spare capacity. Why has this not been investigated?
Ensuring that what is in the budget is spent
– In the Bettamould scenario, there is a fixed cost budget allowance of $50,000,000. We are told in the question that
salaries of all employees and management are paid on a fixed salary basis. Bettamould’s management will not want a
reduction in the fixed budget allowance, since this could lead to the need to reduce the number of employees, which
they may see as having a detrimental effect on the ability of the division to meet its annual budget output target of
100,000 tonnes.
Providing inaccurate forecasts
– In the scenario there may have been deliberate efforts to increase the agreed budget level of aspects of measures and
costs. For example, by putting forward the argument that the budget requirement of 15% processing losses is acceptable
because of the likelihood that ageing machinery will be less effective in the coming budget period.
Meeting the target but not beating it
– In the scenario the bonus of 5% of salary is payable as long as the 100,000 tonnes of output is achieved. This does
not require that actual results will show any other aspects of the budget being improved upon. For example there is no
need to consider a reduction in the current level of quality checks (25% of daily throughput) to the 10% level that current
evidence suggests is achieved by competitor companies. The current budget agreement allows the Bettamould division
to transfer its output to market based profit centres at $200 + $500 = $700 per tonne. There is no specified penalty
if costs exceed this target level.
Avoiding risks
– Bettamould has not yet incorporated the changes listed in note 4 in the question. For example why has the sourcing of
40% of required materials from another TRC division not been quantified and evaluated. It is possible that the division
with spare capacity could supply the material at cost (possibly based on marginal cost) which would be less than
currently paid to a supplier external to TRC. It may be that Bettamould have not pursued this possibility because of risk
factors relating to the quality of the material transferred or its continued availability where the supplying division had an
upturn in the level of more profitable external business.

正确答案：
(b) (i) Andrew may be able to take advantage of tax reliefs under the enterprise investment scheme (EIS) provided the
necessary conditions are met. The conditions that have to be satisfied before full relief is available fall into three areas,
and broadly require that a ‘qualifying individual’ subscribes for ‘eligible shares’ in a ‘qualifying company’.
‘Qualifying Individual’
To be a qualifying individual, Andrew must not be connected with the EIS company. This means that he should not be
an employee (or, at the time the shares are issued, a director) or have an interest in (i.e. control) 30% or more of the
capital of the company. These conditions need to be satisfied throughout the period beginning two years before the share
issue and three years after the ‘relevant date’. Where the relevant date is defined as the later of the date the shares were
issued and the date on which the company commenced trading.
Andrew does not intend to become an employee (or director) of Scalar Limited, but he needs to exercise caution as to
how many shares he subscribes for. If only three investors subscribe for 100% of the shares, each will hold 33% of the
share capital. This exceeds the 30% limit and will mean that EIS relief (other than deferral relief) will not be available.
Therefore, Andrew and the other two investors should ensure not only that the potential fourth investor is recruited, but
that s/he subscribes for sufficient shares, such that none of them will hold 30% or more of the issued share capital, as
only then will they all attain qualifying individual status.
‘Eligible shares’
Qualifying shares need to be new ordinary shares which are subscribed for in cash and fully paid up at the time of issue.
The shares must not be redeemable for at least three years from the relevant date, and not carry any preferential rights
to dividends. On the basis of the information provided, the shares of Scalar Limited would qualify as eligible shares.
‘Qualifying Company’
The company must be unquoted, not controlled by another company, and engaged in qualifying business activities. The
latter requires that the company engage in a trading activity, which is carried on wholly or mainly in the UK, throughout
the three years following the relevant date. While certain trading activities, such as dealing in shares or trading in land,
are excluded, the manufacturing trade Scalar Limited proposes to carry on will qualify.
However, it is also necessary for at least 80% of the money raised to be used for the qualifying business activity within
12 months of the relevant date and the remaining 20% to be so used within the following 12 months. Andrew and the
other investors will thus have to ensure that Scalar Limited has not raised more funds than it is able to employ in the
business within the appropriate time periods.
Reliefs available:
Andrew can claim income tax relief at 20% income tax relief on the amount invested up to a maximum of ￡200,000
in any one tax year. The relief is given in the form. of a tax reducing allowance, which can reduce the investor’s income
tax liability to nil, but cannot be used to generate a tax refund. If the investment is made prior to 6 October in the tax
year, then 50% of the amount invested (up to a maximum of ￡25,000) can be treated as having been made in the
previous tax year.
Any capital gains arising on the sale of EIS shares will be fully exempt from capital gains tax provided that income tax
relief was given on the investment when made and has not been withdrawn. If the EIS shares are disposed of at a loss,
capital losses are still allowable, but reduced by the amount of any EIS relief attributable to the shares disposed of.
In addition, gains from the disposal of other assets can be deferred against the base cost of EIS shares acquired within
one year before and three years after their disposal. Such gains will, thus, not normally become chargeable until the EIS
shares themselves are disposed of. Further, for deferral relief to be available, it is not necessary for the investment to
qualify for EIS income tax relief, i.e. deferral is available even where the investor is not a qualifying individual. Thus,
Andrew could still defer the gain arising on the disposal of the residential property lease made in order to raise part of
the funds for his EIS investment, even if no fourth investor were to be found and his shareholding were to exceed 30%
of the issued share capital of Scalar Limited. Does not require the existence of income tax relief in order to be claimed.
Withdrawal of relief:
Any EIS relief claimed by Andrew will be withdrawn (partially or fully) if, within three year of the relevant date:
(1) he disposes of the shares;
(2) he receives value from the company;
(3) he ceases to be a qualifying individual; or
(4) Scalar Limited ceases to be a qualifying company.
With regard to receiving value from the company, the definition excludes dividends which do not exceed a normal rate
of return, but does include the repayment of any loans made to the company before the shares were issued, the provision
of benefits and the purchase of assets from the company at an undervalue. In this regard, Andrew and the other
subscribers should ensure that the ￡50,000 they are to invest in Scalar Limited as loan capital is appropriately timed
and structured relative to the issue of the EIS shares.