§ Mr. GardinerTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what reasons the appointed actuary of Equitable Life has given to the FSA for the change in his assessment of(a) the valuation of the with-profits fund and (b) the company's financial position, that prompted the company to downgrade its terminal bonus guidelines by 16 per cent. [7058]
§ Ruth KellyThe reduction in policy value was, the Equitable has publicly said,
vital for the long-term interests of the Society and all its policyholders. The decision was taken … because stock markets have fallen heavily over the last 18 months; maturity values now significantly exceed the value of the investments underlying maturing policies; as a mature fund, a large number of policyholders are currently retiring and taking their benefits.
§ Mr. GardinerTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what questions the FSA raised with Equitable Life about the values assigned to policyholders' final bonus levels in its(a) with-profits fund and (b) GAR fund since January 2000; [6623]
(2) what assessments the FSA made, on what bases and on which dates, of the adequacy of the reserves of Equitable Life to meet the liabilities it faced from its guaranteed annuity rate policies, between 1 January 1999 and 8 December 2000. [7057]
§ Ruth KellyThis is an issue which Lord Penrose may wish to consider in his inquiry into the events surrounding Equitable Life.
§ Mr. Russell BrownTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what evidence he will provide to Lord Penrose's inquiry into Equitable Life; and if he will publish it. [8280]
§ Ruth KellyThe Government are submitting to Lord Penrose the report of the Financial Services Authority on the review of the regulation of Equitable Life from January 1999 to December 2000. The report has been1262W presented to Parliament and is being published today (as House of Commons Paper 244). Copies are available in the Vote Office.