After section 494 (disclosure of services provided by auditor or associates and related remuneration) insert—

“494AInterpretation

In this Chapter—

“audit committee” means a body which performs the functions referred to in Article 39(6) of the Audit Directive or equivalent functions;

“Audit Directive” means Directive 2006/43/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on statutory audits of annual accounts and consolidated accounts, amending Council Directives 78/660/EEC and 83/349/EEC and repealing Council Directive 84/253/EEC M1;

“Auditor General” means—

(a)

the Comptroller and Auditor General,

(b)

the Auditor General for Scotland,

(c)

the Auditor General for Wales, or

(d)

the Comptroller and Auditor General for Northern Ireland;

“issuer” has the same meaning as in Part 6 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 M2 (see section 102A(6) M3);

“network” means an association of persons other than a firm co-operating in audit work by way of—

(a)

profit-sharing;

(b)

cost sharing;

(c)

common ownership, control or management;

(d)

common quality control policies and procedures;

(e)

common business strategy; or

(f)

use of a common name;

“public interest company” means—

(a)

an issuer whose transferable securities are admitted to trading on a regulated market;

(b)

a credit institution within the meaning given by Article 4(1)(1) of Regulation (EU) No. 575/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council M4, other than one listed in Article 2 of Directive 2013/36/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council on access to the activity of credit institutions and investment firms M5;

(c)

an insurance undertaking within the meaning given by Article 2(1) of Council Directive 1991/674/EEC of the European Parliament and of the Council on the annual accounts and consolidated accounts of insurance undertakings M6;

“regulated market” has the same meaning as in Part 6 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (see section 103(1) M7);

“transferable securities” means anything which is a transferable security for the purposes of Directive 2004/39/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on markets in financial instruments M8.”.