Global Ethics Day 2026

Trust in the Digital Age

Keynote address from Gabriella Figueiredo Dias, Chair of the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants.

Using AI Ethically

Hear from experts dealing with the ethical challenges in the adoption and implementation of AI. Panel discussion and key take-aways, followed by a Q&A.

Lunch

Promoting an ethical culture

Panel discussion and key take-aways, followed by a Q&A.

The ethics of sustianability

Get up to speed with latest developments and guidance on the new International Ethics Standards (including independence) for Sustainability and Assurance.

The accountant’s role in combatting corruption

Networking drinks reception

Gebriella Figueiredo Dias, Chair of the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants and co-CEO of the International Foundation for Ethics and Audit
Gabriela is the Chair of the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) and co-CEO of the International Foundation for Ethics and Audit (IFEA). Gabriela previously served as Executive Chair of the Portuguese Securities Commission (CMVM), the financial markets and audit regulator, and as a member of the Portuguese National Council of Financial Supervisors. She has been a member of the Board of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) and of its Sustainability Task Force; a member of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) Board of Supervisors and Management Board; Chair of the ESMA Investment Management Standing Committee; and Vice Chair of the OECD Corporate Governance Committee. She is a founding member of the Portuguese Corporate Governance Institute. Gabriela was also President of the Board of Coimbra University. She was a lawyer and an academic for 18 years and has published extensively on capital markets, corporate governance and finance, pension funds, auditing, and sustainability. She holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in law (Coimbra University) and a certificate in Leadership and Communications (Nova University - Lisbon).

Lucy Dennett OBE, Director of Policy, Law Society
Lucy joined The Law Society in 2022 and leads the Policy Directorate supporting policy development across a wide range of public policy issues in Justice, Public law, Private law, and Regulation. The extensive work programme incorporates policy support for the Law Society’s flagship campaigns and work programmes on Ethics, 21st Century Justice, and Reframing Justice, each with a strong focus on the protecting the consumer and upholding the rule of law. Before Joining the Law Society, Lucy held senior roles in the regulation sector including fitness to practise, and patient safety, and led the early set-up of the National Guardian’s Office encouraging staff to “speak up” and adopt a culture of openness and transparency in the Health Sector. Her early career was with PwC as a strategy and change consultant.

Professor Robert Barrington, Professor of Anti-Corruption Practice at the Centre for the Study of Corruption, University of Sussex
Robert was for a long time the head of Transparency International’s UK office – and latterly Chair of its International Council - during which time he campaigned to introduce the Bribery Act, the UK's Anti-Corruption Strategy and the introduction of Unexplained Wealth Orders. He previously worked in the City, and as CEO (Europe) of Earthwatch Institute. Robert has advised the Ministry of Justice, the Cabinet Office and the World Economic Forum, among others, and spoken about corruption to audiences in six continents. His research focusses on global corruption trends and corruption in liberal democracies. Recent publications include the ‘Dictionary of Corruption’ and ‘Understanding Corruption’; he holds an undergraduate degree from Oxford University and a PhD from the European University Institute. His latest book, Corrupted Kingdom, is a comprehensive overview of corruption in the UK, published by Profile Books in July 2026.

Malcolm Bacchus
A former President of the ICAEW (2024/2025) and President of the London Society of Chartered Accountants (2017/2018), Malcolm has held numerous senior financial management positions with private or smaller AIM companies, taking many of them to market. Industries have included leisure, property, childcare, hotels, telecoms, public relations and mineral investment. Malcolm also lectures on management skills with a particular emphasis on business ethics. In addition to involvement with ICAEW Council and Committees (including as a previous Chair of the Ethics Standards Committee), Malcolm is currently a member of HMRC’s Administrative Burdens Advisory Board. Malcolm is also an officer of several educational charities and chairs a local conservation and historical group. He is a Chevalier of the Ordre des Chevaliers Bretvins, Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, Freeman of the City of London, Junior Warden and Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.

Sophie Parkhouse, Compliance Director, Azets UK and Chair of Azets Audit Service Ltd board
From an ICAEW perspective, Sophie is the Chair of ICAEW’s Ethics Standards (appointed June 2026) and the Practice Committees (appointed June 2023), as well as being Deputy Chair of ICAEW West of England Board. From an ethics perspective Sophie is the Ethics partner at Azets and is also a member of the ad-hoc Mid-Tier Firms Ethics Committee. Sophie has a passion for all technical accounting, practice and compliance matters, ensuring that regulation is practical and proportionate enabling business to succeed.

Sophie Wales, Director, Regulatory Policy, Professional Standards ICAEW
Sophie is Director of Regulatory Policy in ICAEW’s Professional Standards Department and is responsible for developing regulations that apply to ICAEW members and firms. Sophie is a Chartered Accountant and Chartered Tax Adviser and trained at a Big Four firm before joining ICAEW 12 years ago.

David Wray, Board member, International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants
David is a Board member of the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants, and a member of the ICAEW Ethics Standards Committee. He is a Trustee and Treasurer for Social Value International (SVI), a Board Member for the International CFO Alliance (ICFOA) as well as its Chair of ESG. He is the Vice-President for the Directeurs Financiers et de Contrôle de Gestion (the French association of Chief Financial Officers and Management Controllers) International Group and serves on the Executive Leadership team of its AI, Digital & Transformation Group. He holds technical and sustainability advisory roles with various organizations in France, the US, UK, and South Africa. David served on the jury for the Ethics & Trust in Finance 10th Global prize, and is the author of “The Power of Potential”. He has published several articles, and spoken publicly, on the connectivity of sustainability and finance, data management, ethics, leadership and the future of finance. David holds an MBA from Athabasca University (Canada) and is a member of ICAEW (UK), CPA Canada and CPA Ontario (Canada).