The coalition government's plans - sounds good

[orc]

Re: The coalition government's plans - sounds good

A lot of folk get Nick Cameron and David Clegg mixed up. The fun starts when the respective party members don't see any difference.

Identikit politics.

[orc]

Re: The coalition government's plans - sounds good

Here is a link to the BBC item on this issue

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/...kip_feature_02


'Unfair' bank charges to be banned, government proposes


Page last updated at 13:37 GMT, Thursday, 20 May 2010 14:37 UK

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The plans will rein in bank charges and excessive credit card rates An end to "unfair" bank and other financial transaction charges are among the new policies that have been set out by the coalition government.

Last year, the Office of Fair Trading suffered a high profile legal defeat in its attempts to regulate bank charges.

The government's plans also include powers to ban "excessive" interest rates on credit and store cards.

Among the other measures are a promise to give homeowners more protection against "aggressive" bailiffs.

Courts will also be told that repossessions must always be a last resort.

Continue reading the main story

I expect pressure, especially on the state-owned banks, to sharply reduce their charges

Martin Lewis Moneysavingexpert.com 'Historic' deal The plans policy-by-policy

Under another proposal, people taking out a store card for the first time will be given a seven-day cooling off period, which is aimed at stopping some people getting into debt in the first place.

Reaction Marc Gander of the Consumer Action Group, a leading campaigner on bank charges, welcomed the government's commitment, but said it would be important to see the detail.

"It [the government] does not define 'unfair' or say what protections will be granted overall," he said.

Martin Lewis of Moneysavingexpert.com also welcomed the new policy.

"I expect pressure, especially on the state-owned banks, to sharply reduce their charges," he said.
"If they don't play ball, the government needs to legislate to make this happen."

The British Bankers' Association played down the implications of the government's threat.

"The OFT has already looked into bank charges and in March this year reported that 'real progress' is being made by the industry in making current accounts work well for customers," said a spokesman.

"Competition is driving down the cost of other accounts that provide a whole range of different features as part of the package," he added.

Advice and debts The expanded policy programme of the new government adopts two policies that had already been set in train by the previous Labour administration.
Firstly, there will be a free national financial advice service. A similar policy was announced in March after three years of planning and pilots.

The version being suggested by the coalition will be funded by a new levy on the financial services industry, rather than by the government and the Financial Services Authority as planned by Labour.

Secondly, the coalition will also halt the ability of creditors to get a court order allowing them to seize and sell the homes of borrowers who have unsecured debts.
In February, the Ministry of Justice said it was looking at setting a minimum level of debt before a court order could be obtained.

Now, the coalition government says it will ban court orders for the sale of properties where the unsecured debt is below £25,000.

Pensions The coalition programme adds some extra pension policies to those first announced by the new government on 11 May.

It says it will look at giving people "flexibility" to get their hands on part of their personal pension pots early - in other words drawing lump sums to spend before retirement.

And in response to pressure from the pension industry, the government says it will "simplify" the rules and regulations that surround pensions to "reinvigorate" company pension schemes.

This is usually taken to mean relaxing the current requirements to offer spouses pensions and some form of index-linking, to make final-salary schemes less expensive for companies to fund.

Joanne Segars, of the National Association of Pension Funds, said the government should be very cautious about letting people have early access to pension savings.
But she welcomed the idea of genuine simplification.

"There have been 800 changes to pension regulations since 1995 - flexibility will slow the exodus from defined benefit schemes in the private sector we are seeing at the moment," she said.

[EXC]

Re: The coalition government's plans - sounds good

It's not inconceivable that this could relate to some work that Tom Brennan did for the Lib Dems earlier this year after a chance meeting he had with Nick Clegg in a TV studio while waiting to be interviewed. Apparently Tom collared him and Clegg invited him to put forwards some regulatory proposals, one of which made it into the policy document of their election manifesto.

I'm a bit patchy on the details of it but essentially it would grant the OFT the power to enforce certain aspects of UTCCR without the need to go to court and could only be challenged by way of Judicial Review.

[Guest]

Re: The coalition government's plans - sounds good

Sent today to Vince Cable and copied to all re-elected MP's who signed his EDM

Dear Mr Cable,

Firstly, let me congratulate you on your General Election result and to wish you success in the role you will play in the coalition Government.

I am a team Member of the Consumer website Legal Beagles ( Legal Beagles - Guarding your Consumer Rights ).
Legal Beagles have been extremely active throughout the Bank charges campaign and test case and continue to work closely with the Office of Fair Trading and other regulatory bodies to achieve a fairer deal for Consumers.

We have recently received the legal opinion of Anthony Scrivener QC.
This was produced on a pro-bono basis following our instruction through Hausfields LLP.
I have forwarded this to you for personal review as I am aware of your interest in this matter.
Also attached are some notes on the issues of "good faith" and "unfairness".
We note that one of the new Government's policies is to introduce measures to end unfair bank charges so we would be pleased to receive your views on the attached 'opinion'.
The Legal Beagles team would also like to formally request a meeting with you to discuss any future action that the new Government might be able to take.

Kind Regards

Budgie

What did you congratulate him for, they came third having lost five seats?

Honestly, don't hold your breath. The simple truth is, they are all the same. None of this affects them, thus they don't care.

[orc]

Re: The coalition government's plans - sounds good

It's not inconceivable that this could relate to some work that Tom Brennan did for the Lib Dems earlier this year after a chance meeting he had with Nick Clegg in a TV studio while waiting to be interviewed. Apparently Tom collared him and Clegg invited him to put forwards some regulatory proposals, one of which made it into the policy document of their election manifesto.

I'm a bit patchy on the details of it but essentially it would grant the OFT the power to enforce certain aspects of UTCCR without the need to go to court and could only be challenged by way of Judicial Review.

That is very interesting. Lets hope its along those lines.

[Budgie]

Re: The coalition government's plans - sounds good

What did you congratulate him for, they came third having lost five seats?

Honestly, don't hold your breath. The simple truth is, they are all the same. None of this affects them, thus they don't care.

I was, of course, referring to Vince Cable's success in his Twickenham constituency which he won with an increased majority.

But, I agree that I shouldn't hold my breath in anticipation of a response, email was sent to Vince and copied to another 60 odd MP's on Thursday 20th May and 2 days later I haven't received a single response. Will see what Monday brings!!!

[Budgie]

Re: The coalition government's plans - sounds good

Well, I didn't hold my breath, but I did eventually get a response.


Dear Mr Budgie

Thank you for your email of 20 May to our Secretary of State, Rt Hon Vince Cable requesting a meeting to discuss bank charges. I am afraid the Secretary of State is very busy at the moment and unfortunately will not be able to meet in the coming months. However, we would welcome your engagement as we consider options to take forward the Coalition Government commitment to introduce stronger consumer protections, including measures to end unfair bank and financial transaction charges.

We are currently considering how best to engage with all interested organisations and we would certainly find it very useful to speak with you at official level given your active role on this issue. I will be in touch with you in the next few weeks to let you know dates which might be suitable. Thank you also for passing on the legal opinion from Anthony Scrivener QC which we have passed onto our lawyers.

Best wishes, Gemma

Gemma Lobb | Consumer Credit and Debt Team | Department for Business, Innovation and Skills | gemma.lobb@bis.gsi.gov.uk | 0207 7215 6687 | 07743758148 | UK Department for Business, Innovation and Skills | BIS | BIS

The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) is building a dynamic and competitive UK economy by:

creating the conditions for business success
promoting innovation, enterprise and science; and
giving everyone the skills and opportunities to succeed.
To achieve this we will foster world-class universities and promote an open global economy.
BIS - Investing in our future

[Jester]

Re: The coalition government's plans - sounds good

Waheeyyyy Budgie. You're gonna be hobnobbing with the 'Right-Honourables' it would seem

In all seriousness, that is a rather encouraging response. They recognise that sites such as this with their large userbase are voters and indeed should be listened to.

Best dust down your suit and kipper tie in anticipation !!

Thanks for the update !!

[Amethyst]

Re: The coalition government's plans - sounds good

Thats a positive response isn't it. Let us know if they live up to what they say. Be interesting if they have some additional plans alongside the work the OFT and Lending Standards peeps are doing.