This new edition of Gay and Simnett’s Auditing and Assurance Services in Australia highlights the major initiative that has been undertaken by the Australia and international auditing standard-setters through the ‘Clarity Project’, which aims to improve the consistent application of the auditing standards worldwide by completely revising all the previous auditing standards into a new improved format.

This edition has been thoroughly revised and updated for these new ‘clarity’ standards, which are operative for audits of financial reports beginning on or after 1 January 2010 and affect almost every chapter of the textbook.

In addition, major changes to independent and corporate governance by national and international legislators and professional bodies, and the development of new assurance services, including assurance on environmental and sustainability reports and greenhouse gas statements are covered. The end-of-chapter questions have been completely revised with new questions in every chapter.

GRANT GAY, MEc Monash, FCA, is an associate professor in the Department of Accounting and Finance at Monash University, specialising in auditing and financial accounting. He is a former audit partner with KPMG and has extensive Australian and international audit experience. Grant is a former member of the Australian Auditing and Assurance Standards Board, as well as being an experienced facilitator in the Chartered Accountants Program and an author in the CPA Program. He researches actively in the audit area and has published numerous refereed articles.

ROGER SIMNETT, PhD UNSW, is a Professor in the School of Accounting at The University of New South Wales. He is a former auditor with Ernst & Young and teaches and researches in the auditing area. In 2002 he became the first academic appointed as a member of the reconstituted International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB), a position he until 2005. He is currently the Chair of the Sustainability Experts Advisory Panel (SEAP) of the International Federation of Accountants and co-chair of the IAASBs task force charged with developing a standard on assurance of greenhouse gas statements. Roger has a background in standard setting, including his time spent on the Australian Auditing and Assurance Standards Board from 1995 to 1999. He researches actively in the audit area and has published numerous refereed articles.

Poonam Bir PhD (Monash University) is responsible for the thorough updating and revision of the end of chapter questions and exercises. Poonam joined the Department of Accounting and Finance at Monash University in 1996 after a number of years in industry and tertiary teaching in Australia and overseas. She currently teaches financial accounting and auditing. She researches actively in international accounting and audit areas.