Ian
Pearson: I beg to move amendment No. 15, in clause 11,
page 7, line 3, at end insert ‘in all
circumstances’. It
is clear that when defining dormancy as a period without
customer-initiated activity, we should not include accounts where no
activity on the account is an integral feature of it. In the case of
fixed-term accounts, whereby the money is locked in for a period of
years when no transactions are permitted without significant penalties,
the 15-year clock should start ticking only when those conditions
expire at the end of the term.
The clause
covers all accounts. In the case of a fixed-term account, it ensures
that the 15-year period of inactivity required to meet the dormancy
definition cannot begin until the fixed-term restrictions have ended.
However, in respect of certain types of account that could be
considered to fall under this exclusion, such as those where a short
notice period is required before a withdrawal can be made, it has been
argued that the position is not totally clear. The hon. Member for
Fareham was getting at that point a moment
ago. We
want to make it clear that such notice accounts are eligible for
inclusion in the scheme. For those accounts, a period of 15 years
without customer-initiated activity will still be a good indicator of
dormancy, subject to the other conditions that the banks and building
societies have committed to taking into account through the banking
code. Our amendment clarifies the position to ensure that only accounts
where a genuine penalty or disincentive is applied to any withdrawal
are to be
prevented from being considered for dormant status. We hope that this
technical amendment clarifies the
situation. Mr.
Hoban: The amendment might well address the issue that I
was probing earlier, but I am not entirely clear that it does that.
Although I welcome the amendment, it does not entirely remove the
objections that I referred to. Although the Minister has clarified what
the amendment is designed to do, and I think that we are working
towards the same end, I am still not sure that the wording “if
at any time” is entirely neutralised by the addition of
“in all
circumstances”. Amendment
agreed
to. Amendment
made: No. 16, in clause 11, page 7, line 4, leave out subsection
(3).—[Ian
Pearson.] Further
consideration adjourned.—[Mr.
Blizzard.] Adjourned
accordingly at one minute to One o’clock till Wednesday 15
October at half-past Two
o’clock.
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