The Charity Commission has indicated that it does not plan to tackle Citizens Advice over the way it treats its pension deficit within its accounts, despite concerns from the Accounting Standards Board.

The Commission recently received a letter from the Accounting Standards Board (ASB) about the issue. The ASB wrote to the regulator after reading on civilsociety.co.uk that Citizens Advice does not include its pension liability on its balance sheet.  The ASB was of the view that the Commission should raise the issue with Citizens Advice, as the current accounting treatment is wrong.

However, when asked what its response would be to the ASB’s concerns, a Commission spokeswoman told civilsociety.co.uk: “We are aware of the issues, we would only generally intervene in discussions between auditors and trustees where to do so was necessary to protect the charity from significant financial or other risk.”

Pressed on whether this meant the regulator would be intervening in discussions between Citizens Advice and its new auditor, Crowe Clark Whitehill, the Commission spokeswoman said: “At this stage the Charity Commission doesn’t need to be engaged.”

Baker Tilly resigned Citizens Advice’s audit account last year in protest at the accounting treatment of the pension hole.  It had been the charity’s auditor for four years and had qualified the accounts every year because of it.