Another Seven Years of Regulatory Problems
The subprime loans crisis has been caused by securitised mortgages. x UK involvement has resulted from the demutualisation of building societies x and fixed-rate mortgages. x Northern Rock was rescued from collapse by the government, because it is politically unacceptable for depositors to lose money. It now has a government guarantee. x There should arguably be a government guarantee of deposits in UK-based banks and building societies, as recently (October 2008) introduced in: Australia, x Denmark, x Germany, x Greece, x Ireland. x This would discourage "light touch" regulation, x which is proving costly for the public, the government and even the industry. x
After 1st December 2001 the Financial Services Authority (FSA) started to regulate as a regulator under the Financial Services and Markets Act (2000). The Parliamentary Ombudsman report Equitable Life: a decade of regulatory failure (2008), x is concerned with the previous decade. Two shorter summaries are: How the Financial Services Authority and the Treasury betrayed Equitable's policyholders (2008) x by Alex Henney; Whatever happened to principles (2006) by Simon Bain:
"The lack of supervision of Equitable Life allowed the insurer to create for itself a regulation-free zone." x x
After 1st December 2001, the FSA is not covered by the Parliamentary Ombudsman. Who guards the guards? Quis custodiet ipsos custodies? They should be open to public inspection. But the Financial Ombudsman Service does not come under the Freedom of Information Act (2000). x The public should be consulted, but there is only a Code of Practice on Consultation rather than compulsory rules. x They should be able to inspect inspectors. But they cannot do so in the case of the new inspectorate of the UK Border Agency, which does not have a website or webpages. (The UKBA website did not even say who is the chief inspector until I brought this to their attention on 13th May 2008. x It does now. x )
The most recent text is an update to: Stakeholder Pensions: The Hidden Charges (2001)
The Financial Services Authority
| October | 2008 | Protecting Savings |
| September | 2007 | "Clearly Doesn't Work" |
| July | 2005 | FSA Terminology |
| March | 2004 | New Labour and the Financial Industry |
The Financial Ombudsman Service
| May | 2008 | The Lord Hunt Review |
Pensions - stakeholder/NPSS
| August | 2008 | Personal Accounts - Charges |
| February | 2007 | "More Choice - Lower Returns" |
| February | 2006 | Comments on the Proposal for a National Pension Savings Scheme |
| January | 2006 | The National Pension Savings Scheme |
| December | 2005 | Here We Go Again! |
| October | 2005 | Reasons for Introducing A New National Pension Scheme |
| September | 2005 | The Cost-Efficiency Problem |
| September | 2005 | Proliferating Peripatetic Pensions |
| May | 2005 | Turner Opportunities |
| July | 2003 | Consumers' Association seminar |
| April | 2003 | A Cap or a Con? |
| February | 2001 | Stakeholder Pensions: The Hidden Charges |
| November | 2008 | (updated) |
Pensions - general
| August | 2006 | Response to the White Paper, Security in Retirement, Executive Summary |
| May | 2006 | Response to the White Paper, Security in Retirement |
| October | 2005 | Cool It |
| October | 2005 | Pensions Reform |
| September | 2005 | The Four Options |
| September | 2005 | Are you a victim of the latest multi-billion pound pensions mis-selling scandal? |
| September | 2005 | The Cost-Efficiency Problem |
| September | 2005 | The Pensions Meltdown |
| October | 2004 | The First Report of the Pensions Commission |
Personal saving - costs
| December | 2006 | Survey of annuity pricing |
| October | 2006 | Transaction Costs |
| October | 2005 | Bundled Brokerage and Soft Commissions |
| November | 2005 | Half-Hidden Costs |
| October | 2004 | Total Cost and Charges of the Financial Industry per Head |
| December | 2003 | A Charter for Churners * |
| September | 2003 | "Savers face fresh hike in fund fees." |
| January | 2003 | The Disclosure of Dealing Costs |
| March | 2002 | Comparative Tables: The Hidden Charges |
Personal saving - general
| June | 2004 | Child Trust Funds and Stakeholder Products Revisited |
| August | 2004 | Myners Review of the Governance of Life Mutuals ( PDF file ) * |
| January | 2004 | Restoring Confidence in Long-Term Savings |
| November | 2003 | Child Trust Funds * |
| July | 2002 | Sandler Review |
| June | 2002 | Problems and Solutions |
| September | 2001 | Who can you trust? |
Lost investments
| January | 2007 | Lost Investors - memorandum to Treascom * |
| May | 2004 | The Population Register |
| April | 2004 | Lost Investments and Investors * |
| September | 2003 | Orphan Funds and Unclaimed Assets |
| July | 2003 | The Use of Personal Identity Numbers to Keep Track of Customers and Investments |
Government interaction with the public
| August | 2008 | Difficulty Obtaining Replies to Enquiries |
| September | 2008 | The Publication of Responses to Consultations |
* published
Website started: February 2001
Stephen Wynn x
E-mail: centre@boltblue.com