Monday, 16th July, 2007: The Accounting Standards Board (‘ASB’) has today published a Statement entitled ‘Half-yearly financial reports’. The Statement is designed to provide guidance to Irish and UK issuers that are required or voluntarily choose to prepare half-yearly financial reports, other than those required by the EU Directive (EC) No. 2004/109 (“the Transparency Directive”) to apply International Accounting Standard (IAS) 34 “Interim Financial Reporting”.
The Transparency Directive has being implemented in Ireland through a combination of primary legislation – the Investment Funds, Companies and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 2006, and secondary legislation – the Transparency Directive Regulations, 2007 (“the Regulations”). The Regulations effectively mandate the use of this Statement for issuers not required to use IAS 34 by the requirement that such issuers should use pronouncements on half-yearly reports issued by the ASB in order to satisfy the true and fair view requirements of section 8(5)(c)(i) of the Regulations.
IAASA has been designated by the Minister for Trade & Commerce as the competent authority for the financial reporting enforcement aspects of the Transparency Directive, including those aspects of the Directive relating to issuers’ obligation to prepare and publish half yearly financial reports.