Professor Andy Lymer

Professor Andy Lymer

Professor of Accounting and Taxation

Contact details

Telephone
+44 (0) 121 414 6677
Fax
+44 (0) 121 414 6678
Email
a.lymer@bham.ac.uk
View my research portal
Address
Birmingham Business School
University House
Birmingham
B15 2TT

Andy has been a member of the Birmingham Business School for over 25 years and is currently its Director of Business Development. He is also the Director of the Research Centre on Household Assets and Savings Management (CHASM). For the 4 years to November 2016 he was the Deputy Head (Associate Dean) of the School, was Interim Head of School during 2012. For the four prior years he was the Head of the Department of Accounting and Finance. He researches and teaches in the fields of taxation (UK, comparative and international taxation), of personal finance (financial education/literacy/capability and financial wellbeing) and information systems (particularly the use and impact of the internet). He has held visiting positions at various institutions in the USA and in Australia. For three years he led the Tax Development Programme of HM Treasury.

Qualifications

BSc (Wales)
MPhil (Wales)
MIRS
FAIA(Acad)
FRSA
FCMI

Biography

Andy has been a member of the Business School for more than 25 years. In this time he has published articles in many leading journals in his field, has authored or co-authored 25 research and teaching books, and has undertaken research projects in his areas of interest for many organisations including the ESRC, Barrow Cadbury Trust, several housing associations, ICAEW, ACCA, CIMA and IASB (representing research income on projects he has led of over £1.3m).  

He is a regular speaker at both academic and professional events and sits on the editorial board of a number of key journals in his fields of interest. He has held visiting positions at the University of New South Wales, Texas Tech University (as the Rawls Visiting Professor of Taxation 2005-2008), University of Melbourne, the University of Sydney and Curtin University. He was the 2005/6 Chair of the Strategic and Emerging Technology (SET) section of the American Accounting Association and has held various other roles for this organisation, including currently its Intellectual Property Task Force.

His research interests lie in the areas of taxation (in particular; capital taxation, comparative taxation, IT in taxation and taxation of e-business), personal finance (in particular; financial education/literacy/capability across individuals of all ages, financial wellbeing and savings policy development) and applied business computing, (in particular; the impacts of the Internet on organisations including corporate reporting and other communications).

From 2008 to 2011 he was the Leader of the Tax Development Programme for HM Treasury.

His latest book released in the summer of 2017 is entitled Comparative Taxation: Why Tax Systems Differ. He also is the co-author of the key undergraduate textbook on UK taxation "Lymer & Oats: Taxation: Policy & Practice" in its 25th edition in 2018.

For nearly 20 years he was the Editor in Chief of the AccountingEducation.com community and edited its newsletter, Double Entries. 

Watch Professor Andy Lymer discuss the financial education conference he chaired in February 2017:

Teaching

Andy currently teaches the following modules:

  • Comparative and International Taxation (optional module - 3rd year, BSc Accounting & Finance)
  • International Business Taxation (optional module - MSc International Accounting & Finance)

In the recent past he has also taught modules:

  • UK Taxation (compulsory module - 2nd year, BSc Accounting & Finance/BSc Accountancy)
  • Information Systems for Accounting (2nd year, BSc Accounting & Finance)

Postgraduate supervision

Andy has supervised to completion 8 PhD. students and 7 MSc. by Research students.

He currently supervising 5 MSc. by Research/PhD. students in the following areas:

  • Social housing and taxation
  • Future for Inheritance Tax the UK
  • Land development taxation systems
  • Impacts of the development of a GAAR in the UK
  • Designing tax systems for informal economies
  • Personal taxation policy development in the UK – impact on citizenship 

Research

CURRENT/RECENT FUNDED RESEARCH PROJECTS:

The Tenant’s Journey: social housing and life-chances
East Devon District Council and DCH (Devon and Cornwall homes) - £30,000 (November 2016 – October 2019)
With James Gregory (School of Social Policy)

Wellbeing and tenure – does home ownership really add up for social tenants?
Vivid Group - £33,000 (November 2016 – December 2017)
With James Gregory (School of Social Policy)

CHASM Fisher funding for 2016 – 2021
With Karen Rowlingson (School of Social Policy, UOB) - £625,000

Savings Manifesto for Low-income savers
Barrow Cadbury Trust - £22,800 (March – September 2016)
With Karen Rowlingson and James Gregory (School of Social Policy, UOB)

Policy development for the All Party Parliamentary Committee on Financial Education for Young People - 2016 Inquiry on Financial Education in Schools
Young Enterprise/Pfeg - £4,000 (February – May 2016)

CHASM Fisher funding for 2013 – 2016 – with Karen Rowlingson (UoB) - £244,000

Personal taxation policy development (PhD scholarship). Funded by - Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) - £72,000 (October 2012 – Sept 2016) with Sam Thewlis (PhD student)

Other activities

Current:

  • Director – Research Centre on Household Assets and Savings Management (CHASM)
  • Business Development Director – Birmingham Business School
  • External examiner -  NUI Galway (2013 – 2016), University of Edinburgh (2015 – 2019)

Recent:

  • Deputy Head of the Birmingham Business School (from 2012 - 2016)
  • Member of the Business School Senior Management Team (2006 to 2016)
  • Member of the Senate of the University of Birmingham (2012 - 2015)
  • Interim Head of the Birmingham Business School (2012)
  • Member of the College of Social Sciences Board (2012)
  • Head of the Department of Accounting & Finance (2008 - 2012)
  • External Examiner - University of Exeter (2012 - 2015), University of Dundee (2010 - 2013), University of Glasgow (2005 - 2009), Bangor University (2001 - 2005), 
  • External Examiner - University of Glasgow (2005 - 2009), Bangor University (2001 - 2005)

Publications

SELECTED ACADEMIC JOURNALS (recent):

(with Troshani, I and L. Parker), ‘Institutionalising XBRL for financial reporting – resorting to regulation', Accounting and Business Research, 2015, Vol 45, No. 2, pp 196-228

(with J. Locke & A. Lowe), ‘Interactive data and investor decision making: An experimental study’, Accounting and Finance, 2015, Vol. 55, No.1, pp 213-240

(with Muzhan, N), ‘Examining the adoption of Computer Assisted Audit Tools and Techniques: Cases of Generalized Audit Software use by internal auditors’, Managerial Auditing Journal, 2014, Vol 29, No. 4, pp. 327-349 

(with C. Helliar, T. Dunne and R. Mousa), ‘XBRL – views of stakeholders’, British Accounting Review, 2013, Vol 45, Iss. 3, pp. 167-182 

(with A. Hansford & K. Pilkington), 'Developments in tax e-filing: practical views from the coalface', Journal of Applied Accounting Research Vol 13, No. 3, 2012, pp. 212-225

(with A. Lowe & J. Locke), 'The SEC's retail investor 2.0: Interactive data and the rise of calculative accountability', Critical Perspectives in Accounting, Vol. 23, No. 3 , pp. 183 - 200, April 2012

(with I. Troshani), 'Translation in technology standardisation: The case of XBRL', Information, Technology and People, Vol. 23, No.2, pp.136-164, 2010.

(with N. Rowbottom) 'Exploring the use and users of narrative reporting in the online annual report', Journal of Applied Accounting Research, Vol. 11, No. 2, pp.90-108, 2010.

PROFESSIONAL JOURNAL PAPERS (recent)

(with D. Ona), ‘The evidence: what psychologists say about tax compliance’, Tax Adviser Magazine, April 2017.

(with L. Oats & S. James), ‘A key element’, Tax Adviser Magazine, January 2017. 

‘Mastering Tax’, Tax Adviser Magazine, May 2016. 

‘Public attitudes to tax’, Tax Adviser Magazine (Chartered Institute of Taxation members’ journal), December 2015.

(with L. Oats), ‘Is there a Doctor in the house?’, Tax Adviser Magazine, June 2015.

(with L. Oats), ‘A foot in both camps’, Tax Adviser Magazine, 17-19, March 2015.

(with L. Oats), ‘It’s just academic’, Tax Adviser Magazine, 14-16, December 2014.

(with T. Dunne, C. Helliar & R. Mousa) 'Generation XBRL?', Accountancy Futures (ACCA journal), 2010.

(with P. Jelfs) 'Flat tax: good idea or panacea?', TaxAdviser (Chartered Institute of Taxation and Association of Taxation Technicians members' journal), May 2010, p. 38-40.

(with A. Hansford & C. Pilkington) 'Research findings on UK SA internet filings', Tax Advisor (Chartered Institute of Taxation and Association of Taxation Technicians members' journal), October 2005, p. 16-17.

AUTHORED/EDITED BOOKS:

(with C. Evans, J. Hasseldine, R. Ricketts & C. Sandford) (2017) 'Comparative Taxation: Why tax systems differ', Fiscal Publications

(with L. Oats), 'Taxation: Policy and Practice', 25th Edition (2018/19), Fiscal Publications, - August, 2018 (annually updated publication)

'Small Business Accounting', Hodder Stoughton, - April 2010 & August 2015

(with N. Rowbottom), 'Teach Yourself Small Business Book-keeping', 10th edition, Hodder Stoughton - April, 2010 & August 2015

(with N. Azmat), 'Teach Yourself Basic Accounting', 4th edition, Hodder Stoughton - April 2010 & August 2015

Editor (with M. Lamb, S. James & J. Freedman), 'Taxation: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Research' Oxford University Press, - September, 2004

Editor (with D. Salter), 'Contemporary Issues in Taxation Research', Ashgate Publishers, - September, 2003.

Editor (with J. Hasseldine), 'The International Taxation System', Kluwer Academic Press - August, 2002.

OTHER SHORT WORKS

(with K. Rowlingson & J. Gregory), ‘Savings for all – a manifesto for inclusive savings policy’ – CHASM Report for the Barrow Cadbury Trust – Dec 2016 

All Party Parliamentary Committee on Financial Education of Young People – 2016 Inquiry Report – ‘Financial Education in Schools – Job done?’, May 2016. 

Rowlingson, K and Lymer A (2015) ‘Sharing our good fortune: Understanding and responding to wealth inequality ’, Birmingham Policy Commission

(with J. Locke & A. Lowe), 'Level 2 digital reporting: A study from the perspective of the non-professional investor', Research Report for the ICAEW

(with T. Dunne, C. Helliar & R. Mousa) XBRL - The views of stakeholders, Research Report for the ACCA, published December 2009

(with A. Baldwin) 'Intelligent Internet Agents in Management Accounting', report for CIMA, 2005

CONTRIBUTIONS TO EDITED WORKS

Prabhakar, R., Lymer, A. and Rowlingson, K. (2017) ‘Does information about wealth inequality and inheritance tax raise public support for wealth taxes? Evidence from a UK survey’, in Building Trust in Taxation eds Peeters, B., Gribnau, H. and Badisco, J, Cambridge: Intersentia

(with A. Hansford & C. Pilkington) 'Filing Self-Assessment Tax Returns by Internet: the Impact on Taxpayer Compliance in the UK', Global Challenges in Tax Administration (eds R.Fisher & M. Walpole), Fiscal Publications, March 2005, pp. 256-267.

'Taxation in an Electronic World', chapter in 'Taxation: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Research', Oxford University Press, September 2004, pp.249-272

(with M. Lamb) 'Producing Good Tax Research', chapter in 'Taxation: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Research', Oxford University Press, September 2004, pp.275-288

OTHER

HM Treasury Tax Development Programme - Leader (2008 - 2011)

Task Force member - American Accounting Association Intellectual Property Task Force - 2010/2011 & 2016-18.

Panel member - Internet Reporting Best Practice Awards 2005 - for the Investor Relations Society.

American Accounting Association Strategic & Emerging Technology Section - President 2005/6 (Vice chairman 2003/4 and President Elect 2004/5) & European Chairperson 1996-present

American Accounting Association Council Member 2005/6.

Co-Chair - 4th, 5th, 6th & 7th European Conference on Accounting Information Systems (April 2001: Athens, April 2002:Copenhagen, March 2003: Sevilla, March 2004: Prague)

View all publications in research portal

Expertise

A specialist in taxation and its impact on individual and business activity and decision making. Also an expert in personal and small business tax and international multi-national corporate tax and in personal finance and asset based welfare.

Expertise

Economic and trade policy

As Director of the Centre on Household Assets and Savings Management, Professor Lymer has expertise in all aspects of personal finance and specifically on all aspects of taxation.