Press release

Government launches consultation on Simple Financial Products

The Financial Secretary to the Treasury, today announced the publication of a consultation document on Simple Financial Products.

From:
HM Treasury and Mark Hoban
Published
14 December 2010
This was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

The Financial Secretary to the Treasury, Mark Hoban MP, today announced the publication of a consultation document on Simple Financial Products. The consultation sets out proposals for financial products that will help promote personal responsibility, enable consumers to compare products and understand product features more clearly. The proposals will also help to encourage competition between providers.

Today’s consultation proposes:

  • industry and consumer-led development of a new category of simple financial products, with standardised features
  • that the first simple products to be developed should be deposit savings and life and income protection insurance products
  • that simple products should not be subject to price-caps, and provision should be voluntary

The government is now seeking input from consumer groups, the financial services industry, and other interested parties, to develop simple products further.

Mark Hoban said:

The government is committed to helping consumers take responsibility for their finances. In order to do this they need to be able to make sense of the huge range of financial products in the market. Simple financial products will help them to do that, by providing a safe choice and a common benchmark against which other products can be compared.

This is one of a series of reforms to ensure that consumers get a better deal from financial services.

Notes for Editors

  1. During a speech to the Consumer Financial Education Body’s conference in July 2010, the Financial Secretary to the Treasury announced that the government intended to consult on a new range of simple financial products by the end of the year.

  2. Simple financial products: a consultation is available on the HM Treasury website.

  3. Responses to the consultation can be sent to: simple.products@hmtreasury.gsi.gov.uk

  4. The response period starts on 14 December 2010 and closes on the 25 March 2011. 

Non-media enquiries should be addressed to the Treasury Correspondence and Enquiry Unit on 020 7270 4558 or by e-mail to public.enquiries@hm-treasury.gov.uk

Media enquiries should be addressed to the Treasury Press Office on 020 7270 5238.

Published 14 December 2010