Spotlight falls on FSA over Northern Rock

All three units that make up the tripartite system overseeing banks in the UK have come under pressure in the wake of Northern Rock. Callum McCarthy, chairman of the Financial Services Authority, gave his view of events in an address at Mansion House and here we provide an extract of his reaction to the criticism.

On an annual occasion, such as this, comparison of one year with another is both inevitable and proper. That would be the case in any year. This year comparison is particularly called for, since the change from 2006 to 2007 has been so marked. The benign financial markets of 2006 have given way to the volatility and strains of this August and September – and the queues of last weekend which have filled television screens. I think that there are good reasons to believe that neither year should be regarded as the norm.