The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Myners on 2016-04-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of whether the consolidation of central clearing houses will lead to an increase in risk concentration.
Lord O’Neill of Gatley
I refer the noble Lord to my written answer of 26 April (HL7583, HL7584, HL7585, and HL7586).
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Myners on 2016-05-10.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether British banks or the public purse could be compelled to participate in a scheme to rescue a failing bank based in the Eurozone to make a new contribution of equity, accept haircuts on assets or be forced into debt for equity conversions.
Lord O’Neill of Gatley
The Government has ensured that the UK will never be required to pay for any future Eurozone bail outs.
The Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive (BRRD) requires Member States to put in place a bail-in tool, which will allow resolution authorities to write down liabilities in a failing bank and convert their debt instruments into equity. The BRRD represents an important step forward in ensuring that the EU effectively addresses the risks posed by the banking system.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Myners on 2016-06-06.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the financial regulators have completed their review of the risk algorithms to be used to permit cross-margining by central counterparties to facilitate the takeover of the London Stock Exchange by Deutsche Borse; whether the results of this review will be published, and whether any further steps will be taken to strengthen confidence in central clearing houses.
Lord O’Neill of Gatley
The timings of regulatory reviews of any proposal by a CCP to make significant changes to its margining arrangements would be a matter for the company and regulators acting in accordance with the relevant legislation. The Bank of England’s 2016 Annual Report on the supervision of financial market infrastructures, laid before Parliament on 4 March 2016, provides further information about ongoing regulatory initiatives in relation to CCPs.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Myners on 2016-10-03.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will review the impact of quantitative easing on investment and on savings to determine whether it is of greater benefit to one or the other.
Lord Young of Cookham
The independent Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is responsible for setting monetary policy to deliver its primary objective of maintaining price stability. As the MPC remit makes clear, ensuring price stability is an essential pre-requisite for economic prosperity. The MPC is accountable to both Parliament and the public, through regular reports and evidence given to the Treasury Committee. The Bank of England has previously produced analysis of the distributional effects of asset purchases on different groups in society. At the August Inflation Report hearing on 7 September the Bank committed to updating this analysis.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Myners on 2016-03-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have reviewed the implementation of the recommendations on public sector procurement made by Sir Philip Green; and whether they will ask Sir Philip to conduct a further review on policy options to reduce government borrowing.
Lord Bridges of Headley
Sir Phillip’s report contributed enormously to the development of the Coalition Government’s policies in respect of common goods and services. Many of the recommendations have been taken forward, including the creation of the Crown Commercial Service. The Crown Commercial Service brings together policy, advice and direct buying, providing commercial services to the public sector and saving money for the taxpayer.
The 2016 Budget announced that The Chief Secretary to the Treasury, with the support of the Minister for the Cabinet Office, will lead an efficiency review, reporting in 2018. We will set out details of this in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Myners on 2016-04-11.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will publish an independent analysis of the economic forecasting record of the Office for Budget Responsibility, including an assessment of the accuracy of forecasting against free consensus expectations.
Lord O’Neill of Gatley
The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) already publish an assessment of the accuracy of their forecasts in their annual Forecast Evaluation Report (FER). This compares the latest outturn data for the economy and public finances with the OBR’s earlier forecasts, and aims to explain the differences. This assessment is required by the Budget Responsibility and National Audit Act (BRNAA); this provides self-discipline for the OBR, and maintains transparency and accountability around their forecasting.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Myners on 2016-04-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of whether the new holding company to be created to give effect to the proposed takeover of the London Stock Exchange by Deutsche Bourse will have to make its whole capital available to support a default by one of the two central clearing houses it will control, and which of those two clearing houses will receive capital priority in the event of a simultaneous or proximate failure of them both.
Lord O’Neill of Gatley
I refer the noble Lord to my written answer of 26 April (HL7583, HL7584, HL7585, and HL7586).
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Myners on 2016-05-09.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of reports that the London Stock Exchange estimates that its acquisition by Deutsche Bourse will lead to a reduction of £7 billion in the margin capital available to protect the financial system from the consequences of counterparty failure, and of whether such a reduction in collateral represents an unacceptable increase in systemic risk.
Lord O’Neill of Gatley
Central Counterparties (CCPs) play a central role in modern financial markets. As the Prime Minster has made clear, the UK’s new settlement with the EU ensures UK firms, including CCPs, will never face any discrimination for being outside the Eurozone.
I refer the noble Lord also to my written answer of 1 April (HL7153).
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Myners on 2016-06-08.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have asked the Serious Fraud Office to investigate matters related to the sale and purchase of BHS.
Lord Keen of Elie
In all cases decisions to investigate are made by the Director of the Serious Fraud Office, who acts independently. In respect of BHS, the SFO has confirmed that it is reviewing material in its possession. If the Director considers there are reasonable grounds to suspect serious or complex fraud which meets his Statement of Principle, he will open a formal criminal investigation.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Myners on 2016-10-03.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to restrict the advertising and promotion of primary option trading and investment to retail investors in the UK by firms based in Cyprus and Malta.
Lord Young of Cookham
The government takes this issue very seriously.
The government will introduce measures to strengthen investor protection when it transposes the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II (MiFID II).
This will include powers for the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to prohibit or restrict the marketing, distribution or sale of financial instruments, including relevant binary options where there are significant investor protection concerns.
These powers will apply from 3 January 2018.