Member

Amendment 36 is therefore designed to ensure that the system operates at pace and with clarity about the timeframes in place. It would require regulations governing referrals from the Financial Ombudsman to the FCA to include a 30-day time limit for FCA opinions, subject to appropriate exceptions. Where an interim response is given, it would require the FCA to provide reasons and to set the expected timing of a final response. It would provide for the annual publication of data on referrals and delays. Is the Minister confident that the FCA can deliver opinions within a 30-day timescale? If the answer is yes, why not put that in the Bill? If the answer is no, the Committee is entitled to ask how the Government expect the new referral mechanism to improve certainty rather than introduce a new source of delay.