§ Dr. CableTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) when and in what form the report of the Government Actuary and the Financial Services Authority into the demutualisation of Standard Life will be published; [121046]
469W(2) if he will make a statement on the Government Actuary's duty to safeguard reasonable expectations of existing policyholders in the case of demutualisation of life insurers; [121048]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonThere is no specific procedure for demutualisation laid down in insurance legislation. In practice, a mutual life insurer proposing to demutualise normally transfers its insurance business to a proprietary company. Such a transfer of business requires court approval under the procedure in Schedule 2C to the Insurance Companies Act 1982. An independent actuary's report on the terms of the scheme is considered by the court. Anyone, including policyholders, with an interest can be heard by the court, as the regulator. If demutualisation is achieved, there is no statutory role for the Government Actuary in the process, but the regulator decides whether to make representations to the court or take any other action after appropriate actuarial advice. One important factor which is addressed is the safeguarding of policyholders' reasonable expectations.
There is no formal proposal before the court to demutualise Standard Life.