The
Government's proposals
5. In the 2005 Pre-Budget Report, the Government
announced its intention to work with the banking industry in designing
a scheme which both preserved the rights of the individual consumer
and at the same time allowed dormant assets to be reinvested in
the community. The Government then embarked upon a two-stage consultation
process with the industry and other interested parties, commencing
in March 2007 with the publication of A UK Unclaimed
Asset Scheme: a consultation. That paper outlined the Government's
proposed scheme in general, proposed changes to the Banking Code
and proposals for legislation. A second paper, entitled Unclaimed
assets distribution mechanism: a consultation, was released
in May 2007, focussing specifically on proposals for the distribution
of unclaimed assets for the benefit of communities. The first
paper indicated that the Government considered that legislation
was necessary for the effective functioning of the proposed scheme.
In July 2007, when the Government's Draft Legislative Programme
was published, there was an indication that the Government proposes
to present such legislation in the next Session of Parliament
beginning in November 2007.[6]
The
Irish legislation
6. The Republic of Ireland has had an unclaimed assets
scheme since 2001. The scheme shares many features with the Government's
proposals, but differs in some important ways. The Irish scheme
is mandatory and obliges banks, building societies and also An
Postthe Irish post officeto transfer the balance
of any account that has not had a customer-initiated transaction
for 15 years to the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA).
As in the proposed United Kingdom scheme, customers have the right
to reclaim their account in perpetuity, and do so through their
account-holding bank rather than through the NTMA. Disbursement
of dormant account funds is controlled by the Government, and
monitored by an appointed board. In 2003, unclaimed life assurance
policies were added to the Irish dormant accounts scheme.
4 A UK Unclaimed Asset Scheme: a consultation, para
1.2 Back
5
Q 127 Back
6
Office of the Leader of the House of Commons, The Governance of
Britain-The Government's Draft Legislative Programme, July 2007
Back