Vince Cable accuses bankers of trying to derail reforms

Banking sector using economic turmoil to argue against regulatory change, says business secretary Vince Cable has lashed out at the big British banks amid reports that Conservative and Lib Dem ministers are at odds over the timetable for sweeping reforms aimed at avoiding another taxpayer bailout, after intensive lobbying by the banking sector. The business secretary accused bankers of using the economic turmoil in Europe to try to derail reform of the financial sector, amid fears the reforms will be shelved until after the next general election. Cable used an interview with the Times (paywall) to claim that “louder and louder voices” were being raised among some of the big British banks warning that regulatory change in Britain would put the recovery at risk. Cable told the Times: “It is disingenuous in the extreme to use the current context to argue against reform. Banks are in a way trying to create a panic around something which they know has got to happen.” The Independent Commission on Banking is expected to recommend ring-fencing banks’ retail operations from their investment arms when it reports on 12

Posted by on August 31, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.