The Centre for Public Interest Audit (CPIA), a new research and policy institute, has officially launched operations in the UK.
It will focus on shaping “best practices” in audit and influence the future of public interest entity (PIE) audit in the UK.
CPIA chair Baroness Ford officially inaugurated the institute, which is financially supported by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW).
The institute will collaborate with various entities across business policy and regulatory frameworks.
Baroness Ford emphasised the CPIA’s role in offering quality and trust in public interest audits by proactively identifying both areas of improvement and best practices.
She said: “All of our research will be evidence-led, but uniquely, we will bring an informed profession-wide voice and perspective to bear on these issues by enabling the deep experience and views of the profession to inform and to enrich the debate.”
The establishment of the CPIA has come at a time when the US, Europe, and the UK are witnessing a divergence in their regulatory goals and methods.
Ford highlighted the timeliness of the CPIA’s launch, stressing the importance for the UK to maintain its principles-based approach to regulation and certainty in the rule of law.
She further added: “The UK is a sought-after destination for capital because investors trust our framework.
“Much is changing in terms of philosophical views on the role of regulation and assurance. We’re witnessing a real-time comparative experiment in public policy, as views on the nature and value of regulation, on the face of it, are diverging quite sharply between the European and North American models.”
Prior to the launch, the CPIA announced the appointment of Dean Beale as its new executive director, effective from 13 May 2025.
Beale brings more than 25 years of experience in the civil service, with a specialisation in the insolvency sector, to his new role at the CPIA.
