(4 February 2022 – Australia) Climate change policy has emerged as a crucial flash point for corporates’ 2022 federal election preparations rapidly taking shape according to CPA Australia.
Regardless of the election result from the last possible date for a combined half-Senate and House of Representatives election by 21 May 2022, corporates and regulators will be tasked with immediate climate action. Rapidly growing concerns expressed by investors about how their funds are invested result in an increasingly concerted shift towards climate-friendly and sustainable business practices.
“I think the big speeches are probably over, but what we will see this year is those road maps being disclosed in terms of the broader set of financial reporting and non-financial reporting that organisations are doing. How they have set up that road map to get to the targets and the metrics that they’ve set themselves” stated CPA Australia Senior Manager of ESG, Patrick Viljoen.
“We know that investors are growing more concerned in terms of where their money is being invested. So, it’s in the best interests of organisations on the ASX to make sure they are reporting in a consistent, comparable kind of way, to ensure that money still flows into them” Mr Viljoen said speaking on the first episode of CPA Australia’s “With Interest” podcast.
CPA Australia also warned that the Australian economy faces its own version of “long COVID” if further targeted business support is not forthcoming to support businesses management of inevitable future variants of concern.
“The overall success of measures like JobKeeper and Cash Flow Boost in keeping businesses afloat will be undone if we make good businesses go it alone now. While we’re not opposed to direct financial support in some circumstances, we think the best approach is to use the budget to better prepare businesses to manage future crises and position them for growth” commented CPA Australia Senior Manager Business Policy, Gavan Ord.
“Increasing the size of the skilled labour pool is essential to supporting Australian businesses, jobs and our economy. The budget should increase the number of free or highly subsidised training places in areas with the greatest skills needs” Mr Ord added.