Richard Simmons

Richard Simmons, CBE is chairman of the BDP Media Group Limited, a group of "specialist, integrated communications companies".

A former partner of Arthur Andersen, Richard has served as adviser to a number of Government ministers. He was co-founder and non-executive director of the Cranfield Information Technology Institute. He is currently a director of Chameleon Nursery Limited; a trustee of the Foundation for Social and Economic Thinking and Acting Chair of Governors at the Moat School. He was formerly Hon Treasurer, Carlton Club Political Committee and a member of the Royal Academy of Arts Development Board. He was awarded the CBE in June 1995 for political and public service.

In an interview with Accountancy Age He stated of Arthur Anderson's collapse:

"In a sense, this was just one of a number of events that were the product of the euphoria of the late nineties in financial markets around the world, when there was a divorce between economic performance and people's perception of what was happening. That was the background to the collapse at Enron. It set the climate and wasn't the cause,' says Richard Simmons CBE, a former partner at Andersen."

Simmons had worked there for 30 years, and was also deputy secretary general to the International Accounting Standards Committee and somewhat preciently in the interview he also observed that 'what happened to Andersen was what was happening widely; but for the grace of God, others could have gone there too'. But it is not so much the euphoric background to Enron that bothered people it is the hard facts of corporate deception that the accountants did not notice. Now Enron like practicies have been normalised under general terms such as the 'credit crunch.'

He was also chairman of the Accountant's Conservative Circle of the Bow Group now housed in one of CAN's new Mezzanines, at 32-36 Loman Street, Southwark, London SE1 0EH.

Affilations

• Westminster Forum, director