Chartered Accountants ANZ (CA ANZ) and the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman (ASBFEO) have collaborated on a guide to assist small to medium enterprises (SMEs) in understanding the potential requests for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions data.
SMEs in Australia are being advised to increase their awareness of GHG emissions measurement due to potential reporting requests from larger companies.
CA ANZ CEO Ainslie van Onselen said: “Mandatory climate-related financial disclosures commenced for large business and financial institutions at the beginning of this year, but what smaller businesses may not realise is this could also affect them.
“While there is currently no obligation for small business to report information relating to their GHG emissions, if SMEs are in the supply chain for large businesses or government, they may be asked to provide this information, especially if they are in high-emitting sectors such as Energy, Agriculture and Transportation and Logistics.”
The guide is part of an initiative to help SMEs understand the types of information they may need to provide about their GHG emissions, as part of the supply chain to larger businesses.
Bruce Billson from Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman stated:
“I encourage SMEs to take the time to read the guide and become familiar with climate-related reporting requirements around GHG emissions. Being prepared and understanding potential reporting obligations could give your business a competitive advantage.
“By including climate-related information in tenders, it will give confidence to potential new clients or customers, that SMEs are prepared and are considering sustainability issues.”
Recently, CA ANZ endorsed a review of auditor compliance, which advocates for more explicit expectations that would enable auditors to better meet their responsibilities and uphold trust in the public eye.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) released a report titled Building Trust, which examines the compliance of auditors with independence and conflict-of-interest guidelines.
“CA ANZ and ASBFEO partner to assist SMEs on GHG disclosure” was originally created and published by The Accountant, a GlobalData owned brand.
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