UK financial regulation overhauled

To answer the question implicit in tomorrow's topic, the UK government clearly believes that improved financial regulation is important. The BBC reports that the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Britain's equivalent of both the US Treasury Secretary and Fed Chairman, originally announced the changes back in 2010, at the beginning of the current Conservative Party government, and that they have recently gone into effect. In Britain, the central bank is the Bank of England, while financial regulation was conducted by an agency called the Financial Services Authority. The Bank of England  now oversees all banking in the UK through an organization called the Financial Policy Committee.  These changes represent a complete overhaul of the British financial regulatory system established by the previous Labor government.

Previously, the Financial Services Authority, provided judicial oversight of the British financial industry. This agency is replaced by a branch of the Bank of England called the Prudential Regulation Authority which will focus on maintaining economic stability. A separate agency called the Financial Conduct Authority will focus on the conduct of commercial and retail banks. The FCA will be headed by Martin Wheatley, who was crucial in investigating the Libor-rigging scandal.

The FSA was originally created by Gordon Brown, then Chancellor of the Bank of England, in 1997 to provide financial oversight. However, about ten years later during the financial crisis, the agency was found to have been insufficient and Brown, then Prime Minister, announced the changes. The FPC was created in 2011 and formalized this year. The article can be found at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21987829.