The letter sent by Tyrie, chairman of the Treasury Select Committee slammed the FSA’s response to the Treasury Select Committee’s report on the Retail Distribution Review suggesting a 12 month delay.
Sants letter said: “I can assure the Committee that the FSA is considering carefully the recommendations in the report and will follow its usual practice of submitting a full response. This will take some weeks, but we would intend to submit it by the end of September.
“It was certainly not the intention of the FSA’s brief statement of 14 July to be seen as a peremptory rejection of any element of the Committee’s report. Rather, it was intended simply to ensure that the momentum behind the preparations for the RDR is not lost.
“For the reasons which we explained in our evidence to your Committee, we believe it is very important to maintain momentum for these reforms and to see professional standards raised, in the interests of the financial advice sector and its customers.
“Given that the Committee broadly endorsed the aims of the initiative, we believe there is general agreement on the importance of firms and individuals completing their preparations as soon as possible.
“Prior to responding to the Committee’s recommendations we will, of course, continue to consider carefully whether further mitigating actions, in addition to those already agreed, are necessary to address your concerns that firms or individuals will be unable, despite their best endeavours, to meet the deadline.
“We are seeking to strike a balance between recognising the importance of carefully considering the report and not losing momentum in an initiative which, we think we all agree, will bring considerable value to consumers.
“We will place this letter in the public domain.”
