CULPABILITY BROWN'S CALL FOR LIMITING REGULATION EXPOSED.
SNP Treasury spokesperson, Stewart Hosie MP, has ridiculed an attack on the First Minister by Scottish Labour finance spokesperson Andy Kerr as a boomerang attack which only highlights the evidence that responsibility for the financial crisis and regulatory failures leads directly back to Downing Street.
Mr Hosie said:
"While the real world is focussed on improving our economy Andy Kerr's playground politics only highlight how Gordon Brown was responsible for the failed financial regulatory regime. A regime he wanted to limit and even pondered whether regulation should be in place at all.
“The evidence over who is responsible for the economic crisis, and the regulatory failures which contributed to it, all leads directly back to Downing Street. The failure of regulation was ‘made in Downing Street’ – numbers 10 and 11.
“Last week evidence from the FSA chairman, Lord Turner, suggested that Gordon Brown pressured City watchdogs into not questioning the banks' risky practices.
“We have also heard revelations that one of the prime ministers key advisors, Sir James Crosby, sacked a whistleblower who warned that banks were heading for disaster. That followed revelations about how Downing Street failed to take adequate action in time concerning Iceland's banks when he was given warnings months in advance.
“And if that was not enough, there are no shortage of commitments by the prime minister to put in place ‘limited regulation’, indeed, Gordon Brown even pondered whether there should be any regulation at all.
"We cannot continue with a system that allowed obvoius problems to pass unnoticed. The FSAs suggestions deserve consideration and a thorough examination - not a political boomerang.
“No doubt Gordon Brown will be pleased that Andy Kerr’s leadership bid failed, given his spectacular ability launch such an embarrassing boomerang attack.
1.. A speech Gordon Brown gave to the CBI Conference in 2005 where he called for "limited" regulation and even suggested whether there should be regulation at all.
The better, and in my opinion the correct, modern model of regulation – the risk based approach - is based on trust in the responsible company, the engaged employee and the educated consumer, leading government to focus its attention where it should: no inspection without justification, no form filling without justification, and no information requirements without justification, not just a light touch but a limited touch.
The new model of regulation can be applied not just to regulation of environment, health and safety and social standards but is being applied to other areas vital to the success of British business: to the regulation of financial services and indeed to the administration of tax. And more than that, we should not only apply the concept of risk to the enforcement of regulation, but also to the design and indeed to the decision as to whether to regulate at all. In the new legislation we will publish before Christmas we will make this risk based approach a statutory duty of the regulators."
2. The resignation of Sir James – one of the prime ministers key advisors - followed revelations that when he was chief executive of bank HBOS he sacked a whistleblower who warned that banks were heading for disaster. Sir James was knighted on the recommendation of the UK government, and later appointment as deputy chairman of the FSA.
3. The warnings by the HBOS whistle blower reflect similar warnings given to the FSA and the Prime Minister about Icelandic banks months before the UK Government took any action - and which is now seen as being so heavy handed it precipitated an even more rapid collapse.
Links to news articles showing how the FSA and Gordon Brown were similarly warned about the Icelandic banks months in advance can be read here:
PM knew of problems with Icelandic banks in March
http://www.independent.co.uk/
FSA was warned not to allow Kaupthing to take over Singer
http://business.timesonline.
The resignation of Sir James – one of the prime ministers key advisors - follows revelations that when he was chief executive of bank HBOS he sacked a whistleblower who warned that banks were heading for disaster. Sir James was knighted on the recommendation of the UK government, and later appointment as deputy chairman of the FSA.
The warnings by the HBOS whistle blower reflect similar warnings given to the FSA and the Prime Minister about Icelandic banks months before the UK Government took any action - and which is now seen as being so heavy handed it precipitated an even more rapid collapse.
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