Richmond Park News: 9 December 2022
FINANCIAL SERVICES AND MARKETS BILL
On Wednesday, I spoke in a debate on the final stages of the Financial Services and Markets Bill. This Bill would revoke retained EU law on financial services and give HM Treasury and the regulators broad powers to determine the future architecture of financial services regulation in the UK.
I welcome the aspects of this Bill that will update the regulatory framework and bring in some long-anticipated reforms. However, I am concerned by the lack of accountability of the regulators to Parliament and the potential impact of the new competitiveness objective on financial stability. I also see this Bill as a missed opportunity to create a regulatory framework that turbocharges the green agenda and that strengthens protections for victims of fraud.
I tabled a number of amendments to this Bill to tackle the above issues. I also supported an amendment that would have guaranteed a minimum level of access to free-of-charge cash machines across the UK. Unfortunately, the Government did not support any of these amendments.
You can read a transcript of the full debate here, or watch a clip of my contribution here.
APPG FOR ETHNICITY TRANSPLANTATION AND TRANFUSION
On Tuesday, I chaired a meeting to create a new All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Ethnicity Transplantation and Transfusion, which I established with Team Margot, constituents of Richmond Park.
The Team Margot Foundation was set up in 2015 in memory of Margot Martini. Margot was just a toddler when she was diagnosed with two rare types of leukaemia, and her mixed family background was a key obstacle to finding her a “perfect” tissue type match. Margot’s family established the charity to raise awareness of the need for more people, particularly those from Black, Asian, mixed heritage & minority ethnic communities, to register as blood, organ, stem cell and bone marrow donors.
I will be working with Team Margot to further their objectives on a national level through the APPG. We will be promoting policy change such as mandating accurate recording of NHS patient and donor ethnicity. I am really pleased to be elected as the Chair of this APPG and look forward to determining a full programme of events in the new year. To read more about Team Margot, you can visit their website here.
PUBLIC ACCOUNTS COMMITTEE: BEIS ACCOUNTS
This week, I attended the Public Accounts Committee session which examined the accounts of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. I used the session to press officials on when updates will be given on the energy support schemes for businesses, and was delighted to receive the response that details regarding changes to be made to the scheme after April should be available before the end of the year.
It is absolutely imperative that businesses across the country, including the many fantastic local companies we have in Richmond Park, are provided with the clarity they need to allow forward financial planning, and to know whether they will be receiving further energy support after the expiration of the initial scheme. Should you wish to see my question and the response I received, you can do so here.