Banking Reform

Lord Christopher Excerpts

Thursday 17th June 2010 Lords Chamber

[Lord Sassoon]

I ask the noble Lord, Lord Haskel, to be patient with us and, as we get into the detailed design, to see how we deal with all these matters. I take his point that this is another thing that needs to be addressed in the detail of the proposals.

[Lord Christopher]

My Lords, I apologise to the Minister in advance; I did not register his reply to one of my noble friend Lord Eatwell’s points. Has there been a risk assessment of this, and if there has, is it to be published? It is relevant that there should be one because, as I understand it, nowhere in the world is there a model like the one that is now being created from which we can draw any experience at all. I remind him that the Financial Services Authority requires financial services companies not only to have regularly revised risk assessment reports but to have plans B, C, D and E in the event that the risks appear to be too great.

We have talked about the top brass, but no one has mentioned the staff. Is it going to be an easy matter to integrate them? What discussions will be taking place with them?

[Lord Sassoon]

The noble Lord enables me to repeat again, for the avoidance of doubt, that we will publish a detailed policy document before the Summer Recess that will include a regulatory impact assessment in the normal way. In preparing the plans for the transition and for the regime thereafter, alternative scenarios have already been, and will continue to be, thought about.

The noble Lord makes an important point about the staff of the FSA. I should take the opportunity to say that the staff of the FSA and of the Bank of England have done an extraordinary job through the very tough conditions of the past few years. I know that the management, led through the transition by Hector Sants and Andrew Bailey on the two sides, are seized of the need to keep the staff fully informed of the transition arrangements, and the noble Lord’s point is well taken.