Monday, 11 March 2013 10:09
Commission argues Government is rushing Banking Reform Bill
The Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards has accused the Government of "railroading" the Banking Reform Bill.
The Banking Reform Bill aims to reform the banking sector to make it safer, more resilient and more resolvable. It is currently going through the committee stage.
The Government is expecting to complete the committee stage of the Bill by 18 April but committee chairman Andrew Tyrie MP said this was too soon.
He said: "It is highly regrettable that the Government appears to be compressing the timetable and railroading the Bill through committee stage. The task of sorting out the banking industry, of which this Bill will form a major part, is absolutely essential for the long-term health of the British economy. Let's get it right."
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The comments form part of the committee's second report 'Banking Reform: towards the right structure' which provides a summary of the recommendations in the first report and the Government's response to recent legislative changes.
Changes include the electrifying of the ring fence between retail and investment banking, a duty on directors to preserve the integrity of the ring-fence and a reserve power to require full separation of an individual bank.
Mr Tyrie said: "The Bill is certainly much improved. However, the Government rejected a number of important recommendations. The commission has examined these again, alongside the Government's explanations for rejecting them. We have concluded the Government's arguments are insubstantial."
This included the recommendation to hold a periodic review of whether the ring-fence was doing its job. This was supported by a number of witnesses giving evidence to the commission but Mr Tyrie said the Government had "failed to adequately address" the recommendation.
Other recommendations which the commission felt the Government had failed to address were the leverage rules, described by Mr Tyrie as "extremely weak", and the relationship between the ring-fenced bank and the holding company.
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The Banking Reform Bill aims to reform the banking sector to make it safer, more resilient and more resolvable. It is currently going through the committee stage.
The Government is expecting to complete the committee stage of the Bill by 18 April but committee chairman Andrew Tyrie MP said this was too soon.
He said: "It is highly regrettable that the Government appears to be compressing the timetable and railroading the Bill through committee stage. The task of sorting out the banking industry, of which this Bill will form a major part, is absolutely essential for the long-term health of the British economy. Let's get it right."
{desktop}{/desktop}{mobile}{/mobile}
The comments form part of the committee's second report 'Banking Reform: towards the right structure' which provides a summary of the recommendations in the first report and the Government's response to recent legislative changes.
Changes include the electrifying of the ring fence between retail and investment banking, a duty on directors to preserve the integrity of the ring-fence and a reserve power to require full separation of an individual bank.
Mr Tyrie said: "The Bill is certainly much improved. However, the Government rejected a number of important recommendations. The commission has examined these again, alongside the Government's explanations for rejecting them. We have concluded the Government's arguments are insubstantial."
This included the recommendation to hold a periodic review of whether the ring-fence was doing its job. This was supported by a number of witnesses giving evidence to the commission but Mr Tyrie said the Government had "failed to adequately address" the recommendation.
Other recommendations which the commission felt the Government had failed to address were the leverage rules, described by Mr Tyrie as "extremely weak", and the relationship between the ring-fenced bank and the holding company.
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