PARLIAMENTARY OMBUDSMAN AND EQUITABLE LIFE

Motion Text

That this House recognises the important role of the Parliamentary Ombudsman in determining complaints of maladministration; supports the convention that the Ombudsman's recommendations are accepted and acted upon by the Government; recalls that the central recommendation of the Ombudsman in her July 2008 report on Equitable Life was the payment of compensation to remedy relative losses with the aim of restoring Equitable Life policyholders to the position they would have been in had no maladministration occurred; accepts that public purse considerations will play a part in the amount of compensation made available; notes that the impact on the public finances can be spread by prioritising payments to the most needy and elderly while the economy recovers; and calls on the Government to announce a fair quantum of compensation in line with the personal pledges made by Ministers and other hon. Members.