Equitable Life regulatory failures “will not be remedied”

The government’s proposal to compensate Equitable Life policyholders for financial loss incurred as a result of regulatory failure does not go far enough, said the Parliamentary Ombudsman Ann Abraham in a new report laid before Parliament. Ms Abraham said the government’s response to her recommendation for an independent compensation scheme to meet claims within two years fails to recognise the significance of the injustice she identified in a report published in July 2008 last year, which established 10 findings of maladministration by the government and its agencies in the prudential supervision of Equitable Life.