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East of England accountancy firm, Moore Thompson, has joined a national petition to see the definition of the word accountant changed in the Oxford English Dictionary.

Currently defined as ““a person whose job is to keep or inspect financial accounts”, Moore Thompson wants the definition to be widened to include their work as a trusted advisor to so many businesses.

They are backing a national campaign by online accountancy software provider, Xero, which is calling for the definition to be changed to “a person whose job is to keep or inspect and advise on financial accounts.”

In its first few days, the campaign has already garnered the support of nearly 600 people and has already won the support of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.

Matthew Upex, Partner at Moore Thompson and a leading expert in cloud accounting at MT Cloud, said: “While this change may seem small to many people, to us as accountants it is important that we make it clear that we are more than just bean counters.

“Much of our work is focused on not only providing clients with accounts and figures, but also advising them on what they mean and how it could affect their future performance.

“Many practices like ours also offer specialist tax planning advice, support with corporate finance and much more. We certainly don’t just keep or inspect financial accounts.”

Matthew explained that with the advent of technology, such as AI and blockchain, many firms were now freer than ever to focus on providing advice rather than spending our time pouring over accounts.

“Some have suggested that technology may be a threat to our business, but in reality, it is a tool that we are able to use to improve the financial performance of the clients we work with,” said M

“At Moore Thompson, we are embracing the latest innovations to make our practice more efficient and deliver a higher level of service and advice to our clients, which is why it is important that people can understand the role of an account and this should be recognised within the Oxford English Dictionary.”

To find out more about the online petition, please visit https://www.change.org/p/oxford-english-dictionary-change-oxford-english-dictionary-s-archaic-definition-of-an-accountant

Or to learn more about the wide range of technology-driven advisory services provided by Moore Thompson, please visit www.moorethompson.co.uk