economonkey

FSA wants more powers, Gordon Brown wants more time

May 6th, 2008

The Financial Services Authority says it is frustrated by the government’s foot-dragging over new legal powers which would make it easier for the FSA to target market-abuse.

Speaking at a parliamentary inquiry into financial stability and transparency, the FSA Chairman, Callum McCarthy, also echoed Mervyn King’s earlier call for a clearer delineation of the responsibilities of the FSA and Bank of England. At present responsibility for the UK’s financial stability lies with no single organisation - which means that after a major screw-up like Northern Rock it’s difficult to hold anybody accountable.

Don’t expect any big changes in the near future however, we’re sure Brown and Darling are far more interested in cooking up increasingly desperate schemes to keep the housing market bubble inflated for just a little while longer, rather than taking some genuinely prudent moves to help regulate the country’s banking system.

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