Government watchdog challenges Equitable Life response

Ann Abraham, the Parliamentary Ombudsman responsible for investigating complaints about government departments, has said the government’s partial acceptance of her 10 findings of maladministration into Equitable Life is “disappointing”. In evidence to the Public Administration Select Committee, Ms Abraham challenged the government’s basis for rejecting several of her recommendations, including a compensation scheme operated by an independent tribunal to pay redress to policyholders. The government also rejected the Ombudsman’s finding over the sanctioned appointment of Equitable Life’s chief executive while he was still the firm’s appointed actuary on the basis that this was a company issue and only accepted in part maladministration by the Government’s Actuary Department in its supervision of Equitable Life.