Role of the Committee

The Treasury Sub-Committee on Financial Services Regulations has been set up to examine regulatory changes with legal effect, proposed by the Financial Conduct Authority, the Bank of England and the Prudential Regulation Authority.

The Sub-Committee has been established in response to the new framework for financial services regulation, which has been created following the transfer of responsibility for large parts of financial services regulation from the European Union back to the UK, as part of the UK’s departure from the EU.

The Sub-Committee will take a view on what form of scrutiny is appropriate for each regulatory proposal, and will be a forum for oral evidence when that is merited.

Depending on the subject, external deadlines, and the amount of oral evidence the Sub-Committee decides to take, an inquiry may give rise to a report to the House, published by the Treasury Committee. Other inquiries may simply consist of oral evidence without a report.

When the Sub-Committee has chosen a proposal for detailed scrutiny, it will usually issue a press notice outlining the main themes of the scrutiny and invite interested parties to submit written evidence. It may also identify possible witnesses and issue specific invitations to them to submit written evidence.

The Sub-Committee has the power to send for “persons, papers and records”. It therefore has powers to insist upon the attendance of witnesses and the production of papers and other material. These formal powers are rarely used.

Specialist advice to the Sub-Committee

The Sub-Committee plans to appoint Specialist Advisers to assist in its scrutiny of draft regulatory proposals for financial services. It invites applications from people who have an in-depth knowledge of regulation of financial services over a number of years, ideally through substantial experience in the sector, or who have substantial experience of interaction at a high level with regulators.

For further information, please email finservsubcom@parliament.uk.