EY upbeat about UK economy after breaking through £2bn barrier

BIG FOUR accountancy firm EY broke through the £2bn barrier for fee income last year after reporting eight per cent growth in its UK services.

Profits per partner fell 3.7 per cent to £700,000.

The firm added 95 new equity partners during the year ending July 3 2015, including three in Yorkshire, and refurbished most of its 21 offices.

EY, formerly known as Ernst & Young reported global revenues of $28.7bn, a rise of 11.6 per cent representing the fastest growth since the financial crisis of 2008.

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Steve Varley, UK chairman, said: “I am very proud of the jobs that we have created this year, especially as we continue to provide more opportunities for school leavers as well as experienced hires and new graduates.

“We have recruited over 4500 people in the UK to fuel our growth and we plan to continue this level of investment as part of our ongoing global growth strategy. We remain committed to the things that are important to us – high quality service, an inclusive people culture, entrepreneurship and supporting an attractive and vibrant UK economy – all of which are central to our long-term strategy.

“We have built great momentum in the market and believe that by maintaining this momentum we will continue to retain and attract the best talent to serve our clients.

“I am feeling very positive about the health of the UK economy. Improved market conditions have provided us with a great platform to further accelerate our investment in the business.”

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Stuart Watson, senior partner for EY in Yorkshire, told The Yorkshire Post: “I don’t think people feel like there’s a boom on... but the great majority of our clients are having a sensibly good time and doing things as a result of that and using our services.”

He added: “Yorkshire and the North of England as a whole, are important markets for EY.

“As confidence returns we’re seeing increased demand from our clients to help them drive growth in the UK and internationally.

“The Government’s focus on policy calling for Yorkshire and the wider North to take control of key economic development plans should build on that confidence.”

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He said the firm’s headcount is growing faster in the North than in London, although from a lower base.

He added that the market for accountancy work is very competitive with most, if not all, of Yorkshire’s large corporates tendering audit work between now and 2018. “Everybody is competing hard to win those,” he said.

Mr Watson said: “One of the reasons we put those partners and people in is if you have the best team and your team is there and available and it’s got the right skills then you win the work.

“You have to be price competitive as well. Clients are always mindful they are getting value for money.”

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In Yorkshire, EY recruited Paul Tomlinson and Christopher Gallagher as direct entry partners from Big Four fivals and promoted Mark Morritt to the partnership internally. EY appointed Leeds-based partner Gareth James to head its national assurance analytics practice.

During the year, the firm’s foundation supported 17 year 12 students from Yorkshire on its paid work experience programme, Smart Futures.

The EY Foundation, a new independent UK charity, also supported eight regional social enterprises through its Accelerate initiative.

Mr Varley, who is from Bury, Lancashire, said EY is looking at new ways to widen access to the accountancy profession by removing academic qualifications as an exclusion filter from the 2016 initial application process.

He added: “We want individuals from all backgrounds to have the opportunity to succeed at EY and believe in levelling the playing field.” The UK firm recruited 4,500 people last year.

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