“A report by the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee published March 30, 2011 has called for a competition probe into the Big Four auditors’ oligopoly. Their ‘complacency’ and ‘dereliction of duty’ contributed to financial crisis, the report found. The House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee’s report follows an eight month investigation into the audit market. There are three main areas of findings. ‘The Big Four auditors’ domination of the large firm audit market limits competition and choice’ In 2010 they audited 99 of the FTSE 100 largest listed companies, which change auditors every 48 years on average. In bank audit in the UK only three of the Big Four are active. And there is the risk that one of the Big Four might leave the audit market, leading to an unacceptable degree of market concentration. The Committee calls on the Office of Fair Trading to hold a detailed investigation into the audit market with a view to a possible inquiry by the Competition Commission. It recognises that the global reach of the Big Four audit firms – Deloitte, Ernst & Young, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers – goes beyond the scope of national authorities, but considers that the UK should take a lead since London is a major global financial centre where the Big Four are particularly prominent.”