Asked by: David Duguid (Conservative - Banff and Buchan)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to provide financial relief to Equitable Life policyholders.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
In 2010 the government allocated up to £1.5 billon, tax free, for payment to affected policyholders. More detail on the history of the action taken on this issue can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/equitable-life-payment-scheme-final-report.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to support people affected by the closure of Equitable Life.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
After nearly 5 years of operation which saw over £1 billion paid to nearly 1 million affected policyholders, the Equitable Life Payment Scheme closed to claims in 2015. Further guidance on the status of the Payment Scheme after closure is available at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/equitable-life-payment-scheme#closure-of-the-scheme. There are no plans to reopen the Payment Scheme or review the funding allocation made to it.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps the Government has taken to prevent the closure of pension companies since the closure of Equitable Life.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The Government implemented a new solvency regime, set out in the Solvency II Directive, which came into force on 1 January 2016. This risk-based regulatory system, under which UK insurance companies are regulated, was developed by the European Commission over approximately 15 years with input from the UK Government, regulators and industry.
The Prudential Regulation Authority, the regulatory arm of the Bank of England, supervises UK insurance firms and groups under Solvency II. It has statutory objectives to promote the safety and soundness of the firms it regulates and contribute to securing an appropriate degree of protection for policyholders under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (sections 2b and 2c).
Asked by: Jo Stevens (Labour - Cardiff Central)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps the Government has taken to support people affected by the Equitable Life scandal.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
In 2010 the government allocated up to £1.5bn, tax free, for payment to affected policyholders. More detail on the history of the action taken on this issue can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/equitable-life-payment-scheme-final-report
Asked by: Philip Hollobone (Conservative - Kettering)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will place in the Library a copy of the detailed methodology used to calculate Equitable Life payment scheme compensation payments.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The methodology for calculating payments to Equitable Life policyholders was published in 2011 and can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/equitable-life-payment-scheme-design
Asked by: Philip Hollobone (Conservative - Kettering)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will place in the libraries of both Houses the methodology for calculating payments to Equitable Life policyholders.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The methodology for calculating payments to Equitable Life policyholders was published in 2011 and can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/equitable-life-payment-scheme-design .
Asked by: Philip Hollobone (Conservative - Kettering)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many times corrections of payments to Equitable Life policyholders have been made; and what guarantees are in place to ensure that no further errors in the payments and calculation method will be made.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The payment calculation has been examined by a panel of actuarial peers and the Equitable Members Action Group. No errors in the calculation methodology have been identified.
Whilst the Payment Scheme was in operation policyholders could check the input data received from Equitable Life that was used as the basis for their individual calculation. Where an error was found in the records Equitable Life held, a policyholder could request an independent review of their individual payment and where necessary a payment could be recalculated.
The Payment Scheme is now closed. The Payment Scheme’s final progress report set out the numbers of independent reviews conducted and this can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/equitable-life-payment-scheme-final-report
Asked by: Faisal Rashid (Labour - Warrington South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if his Department will reopen the compensation scheme for Equitable Life victims.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
Since 2010, we have taken more action than any previous government to resolve this issue by allocating up to £1.5bn, tax free, for payment to affected policyholders. There are no plans to allocate any further funds to the Equitable Life Payment Scheme, or reopen it.
Asked by: Robert Goodwill (Conservative - Scarborough and Whitby)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has plans to allocate additional funding to the Equitable Life payment victims.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
There are no plans to review the funding allocation made to the Equitable Life Payment Scheme. Since 2010, we have taken more action than any previous government to resolve this issue by allocating up to £1.5bn, tax free, for payment to affected policyholders.
Asked by: Wes Streeting (Labour - Ilford North)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he plans to (a) reopen and (b) allocate additional funding to the Equitable Life payment scheme.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
Since 2010, we have taken more action than any previous government to resolve this issue by allocating up to £1.5bn, tax free, for payment to affected policyholders. There are no plans to allocate any further funds to the Equitable Life Payment Scheme, or reopen it.