Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyse the current developments to “mainstream” and standardise sustainability reporting and the consequences of those changes. Those changes give rise to the colonisation of sustainability reporting through the adoption of financial reporting concepts. Design/methodology/approach This research draws on critical theory, particularly the work of Foucault, to understand the dynamics of accounting change. This approach provides an alternative to the current narrative that the concepts that underpin reporting are universal and timeless. Findings It is suggested that if the aim of mandatory sustainability reporting is to promote companies adopting sustainable business models, then it must properly reflect the context of the company. Both transactive and relationship information is critical to providing an account that can be used to judge the performance of the corporation beyond its production of short-term net positive cash flows. Practical implications The design of standard setting arrangements for sustainability reporting needs to recognise that it may be unhelpful to simply adopt financial reporting concepts for the purposes of directing corporate behaviour towards sustainable development. Social implications Continuing to adopt a view of the corporation as a nexus of contracts with no clear accountability to stakeholders is likely to stymie efforts to deal with the environmental and social crisis facing people and planet. Originality/value Whilst other works have considered the development of sustainability reporting, to the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first study to consider the impacts of “mainstreaming” it within mandatory corporate reporting.

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The bioefficacy of a standard domestic aerosol insecticide has been compared with that of a similar spray in which the droplets were electrostatically charged. The aerosol was charged without the need for an external power supply, by enhancing natural charge separation processes that occur during atomisation. The charge-to-mass ratio achieved was 1.1 x 10(-4) C kg-1, compared with 2.2 x 10(-5) C kg-1 for the standard aerosol. Efficiency was assessed for insects in free flight. A direct space-spray application method was used to study the bioefficacy of these aerosols on houseflies, Musca domestica, and an indirect space-spray method on houseflies and mosquitoes, Culex quinquefasciatus. Two levels of concentration of active ingredients were compared. At low concentrations of 1.57 g kg-1 of bioallethrin and 0.29 g kg-1 of bioresmethrin, the charged aerosol achieved a significant reduction in KDT50 (time at which 50% of the flies were knocked down), compared with the standard aerosol. In the direct spray application to houseflies, the KDT50 was reduced by 50%, while in the indirect spray the KDT50 was reduced by 40%. In the indirect spray of mosquitoes, the KDT50 was reduced by 22%. With higher active ingredient concentrations of 2.09 g kg-1 for bioallethrin and 0.39 g kg-1 for bioresmethrin, the charged aerosol also demonstrated faster knockdown than the standard, but the improvement was less marked. In the direct spray application to houseflies, the KDT50 was reduced by 21% compared with the standard aerosol, while in the indirect spray the KDT50 was reduced by 16%. In the indirect spray of mosquitoes, the KDT50 was reduced by 24%. The percentage mortality after 24 h was also increased with the charged aerosol. Charge carried by the droplets results in increased interception of the insecticide, as the droplets are attracted to the insects in flight and space charge effects within the aerosol could cause improved dispersion in the test chamber.

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AbstractRegulations addressing corporate reporting in the United Kingdom require reporting entities to disclose their business model in their Strategic Report. The business model is intended as the organising concept for the non-financial disclosures, with its principal role being to explain how the reporting entity creates value for stakeholders. The business model concept has become a pervasive concept for corporate reporting with global organisations such as the IIRC, AICPA and IFAC emphasising it central role in external reporting. Using interviews conducted with FTSE 350 company executives and others in the reporting ecosystem, this paper analyses the extent to which responses from the interviewees align with the economic and strategic management literature framing the conceptualisation of business models. It is argued in this paper that there is a powerful preformative aspect to business model reporting. It does not strengthen accountability but serves a different purpose: to colonise new arenas of value by installing unstable concepts like purpose, value and stakeholders. These business model disclosures obfuscate and provide an opportunity for managers to construct narratives that are untethered from the financial statements to create stories without numbers. This ‘reinvention’ of capitalism is more a recasting of old principles rather than ushering an era of a more enlightened view of the corporation. It is a salutary reminder that regulation of corporate reporting does not necessarily lead to improved accountability.