Paul Sutcliffe Quotations

We should be reporting the results of economic phenomena, like the imposition of taxes, in the period in which the taxing event occurs and the government gains the right to resources. This will often be the same period in which the cash flows, but need not be.

Rather than starting from an approach which focused on particular/specific types of transactions and provides views on whether revenue arises from that transaction, and when and how much revenue, the exposure draft establishes broad principles and then explains how those principles are applied to particular transactions. This means that the principles are in place to provide broad guidance. They can be applied to transactions that may be of particular importance to some jurisdictions, but not in other jurisdictions. The problem with adopting an approach which focuses on specific transactions, is that some types of transactions may be missed. This is particularly significant for international standards intended to encompass many different jurisdictions, with different resource flows and administrative arrangements.

For the first time, this document proposes international accounting standards for the recognition and measurement of the main sources of revenue for most governments and their entities - that is, taxes and transfers, including a wide range of non-exchange revenues. The exposure draft will provide guidance to those countries searching for accounting policies to deal with this complex area.