In Practice
The Accountants of Ireland Say Yes Lisbon
By Des O'Neill - OmniPro
Sep 29, 2009 - 9:10:53 AM

94% of Ireland’s accountants believe that the people of Ireland should vote ‘Yes‘ for the Lisbon Treaty on 2nd of October 2009. This result is based on Ireland’s first All Ireland, All Institute Accountancy Practice Benchmarking Survey conducted by OmniPro. There were 240 respondents from all around Ireland representing, small, medium and large accountancy practices. The accountants, who produced this overwhelming result, represent over 10% of the 2000+ registered and authorised Accountancy firms in Ireland

As accountants you are best positioned to give real time economic analysis and commentary. Small to medium sized business (SMEs) are the lifeblood of Irish employment and our economy. No matter what the Government, the Central Statistics Office, the economists and the policy makers do they are working from historic information. The practising accountants of Ireland have their finger on the pulse of our SME’s and they believe that a ‘Yes’ is best for those SMEs.     

However, things are not as clear on NAMA from the accountant’s perspective. The jury is still out as to whether the NAMA lifeboat is going to have room for everybody. NAMA has totally divided the profession with 42% feeling that NAMA will improve the flow of credit and finance to the SME sector but 47% disagree. A further 11% are unsure what impact, if any, NAMA will have.

The accountants in practice knew before anyone else what was coming down the line. Back in the good old days before anyone else had even thought of the dreaded “R word”, not to talk of actually saying it, the accountants had sensed the omens. The accountants are probably best positioned to see the future now too. Unfortunately for the Government, based on the accountants’ vision of the future, it appears that there is more bad news on the way in relation to tax revenues. Based on their interaction with their clients and preliminary calculations they estimate a 39% drop in the income tax payable in the upcoming October Income Tax deadline.

The survey indicated that, based on their knowledge of their clients, the accountants believe that up to 65% of SMEs will cut employment and outputs in the coming 12 months. The good news is that, based on a review of their client base, despite the cuts, 85% of Irish SMEs will be viable businesses at 31st of December 2010. Yes, there are going to be further cuts and further unemployment but with the right support and advice we will get through it.

Full details of the result of the survey will be available for purchase in November 2009. If you want to benchmark your practice against your peers contact Sinead on 01 4110000 or skeating@omnipro.ie to book your copy today.

For further deatails please visit www.omnipro.ie

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