Clause 172
Banking Bill
12:00 pm
Ian Pearson (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Business, Enterprise & Regulatory Reform; Dudley South, Labour)
Perhaps I was being loose with my terminology, but let me make it clear that the Treasury, which is able to exercise that power, will do so at its discretion. It will want to use the power if it believes that clause 171(1)(a) or (b) are engaged. As I said, in the normal course of events I expect there will be a large measure of agreement on the types of inter-bank payment system we are discussing. With regard to the potential for the future, the Treasury will be open to representations from the Bank of England, the FSA and individual organisations on whether there are new systems that are of such systemic or system-wide importance that they should be recognised.
The hon. Member for South-West Hertfordshire raised an issue about the time frame. As he will appreciate, that will depend on the nature of the representations. The Treasury might seek further information from the Bank of England, the FSA or the operator of a system, so it is not possible to give a precise time scale. I return to the overall point that there has to be a recognition procedure, and we believe that it is right that the Treasury leads on that. The Treasury will consult widely on that point with the Bank of England, the FSA and operators. I hope that those reassurances will be supported by the Committee.