The Financial Policy Committee (FPC) is an official committee of the
Bank of England
The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the Kingdom of England, English Government's banker and debt manager, and still one ...
, modelled on the already well established
Monetary Policy Committee. It was announced in 2010 as a new body responsible for monitoring the
economy of the United Kingdom.
Focusing on the macro-economic and financial issues that may threaten long term growth prospects,
it was expected to be officially set out in
legislation
Legislation is the process or result of enrolling, enacting, or promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law it may be known as a bill, and may be broadly referred ...
during 2012.
Although early plans were for the interim (pre-legislation) FPC to meet in late 2010, the committee's first meeting was held in June 2011.
As of March 2012, the FPC is expected to take over operational responsibility for managing the financial sector from the
Financial Services Authority with legislation planned for 2013.
Once operational, the committee, headed by the Governor of the Bank, it will address any risks it identifies by passing on its concerns to a new
Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), which will be obliged to act.
Plans for the committee were set out in
George Osborne's first
Mansion House speech in June 2010, along with the creation of the PRA and a Consumer Protection and Markets Authority (CPMA, later renamed the
Financial Conduct Authority
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is a financial regulatory body in the United Kingdom. It operates independently of the UK Government and is financed by charging fees to members of the financial services industry. The FCA regulates financi ...
, or FCA).
Minutes of FPC meetings are made available,
a move intended both "to increase transparency and to help transmit messages to the City".
After legislation is passed, the FPC will be fully accountable to
Parliament
In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
.
See also
*
Financial Services Authority
References
{{reflist, colwidth=30em
External links
Explanation of the Financial Policy Committeeon the Bank of England's website
Bank of England