The BBC has ditched KPMG as its auditor after 18 years in the role, the Standard can reveal.
The state-owned broadcaster, whose programmes include The Apprentice featuring Lord Sugar, has appointed EY to check its books at a time when the corporation is facing intense scrutiny over its finances. The BBC’s Royal Charter is due for renewal in 2016 and politicians have called for huge cuts across its operations.
Hywel Ball, EY managing partner for assurance, UK & Ireland, said: “To win the audit of such a prominent and valuable media institution in British society is a great achievement for the audit practice at EY.”
EY is one of the “big four” accountancy firms that audit most of Britain’s largest companies, the others being Deloitte, KPMG and PwC. They are also under attack from policymakers both here and in Europe, who want to break their dominance in the sector.
A BBC spokesman said the Department for Culture, Media and Sport had approved the BBC’s appointment of EY “following a competitive tender exercise. This appointment was agreed by the BBC Executive Audit Committee and was subject to BBC Trust approval.”
