Nor does the issue help the reputation of the accountancy profession, whose auditing before and during the global financial crisis has come into question.

BBC: KPMG quits audit roles over insider trading allegations

Mr Berardino's defence, beyond accusing Enron of withholding information, is that the accountancy profession as a whole is at fault, and a few others as well, such as credit-rating agencies and investment bankers.

ECONOMIST: ��Errors of judgment�� are piling up at Andersen

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants said the accountancy profession, praised in the report for its encouragement of non-graduates, was willing to share best practice with other professions about how to offer "flexible routes" to getting qualifications.

BBC: UK Politics

On Friday, listeners will be hoping that Mr Berardino, whose company failed to uncover a slew of hidden debts while auditing bankrupt energy trading giant Enron, will explain how the accountancy profession aims to reassure investors that its audits can be relied on.

BBC: US Secretary of State Colin Powell

But if accountancy acts purely in its own self-interest then it is not a profession at all but is more like the Guilds of old, and like them if it acts as they did in monopolistic fashion to exploit others for their own gain then that is an invitation for their abolition as regulators.

FORBES: Have They Pushed the Self Destruct Button at the International Financial Reporting Standard Foundation?