NI Presbyterian mutual society, Short of funds for withdrawal?

warmhands.coldheart

Will today be D-Day for PMS "SAVERS!!"

crazymess

Newsletter today:



Ministers to meet Brown on PMS

Gordon Brown will face pressure to come to the aid of PMS savers



Published Date: 17 June 2009

THE First and Deputy First Minister are due to meet Prime Minister Gordon Brown to urge for a practical solution to the plight of the troubled Presbyterian Mutual Society (PMS).
The eyes of almost 9,500 desperate PMS savers will be fixed on Wednesday's meeting, hoping for a constructive outcome.

In November, the £314 million mutual went into administration, leaving many people without access to life savings as well as crucial business and charity funds.

PMS savers have campaigned ever since, reminding Gordon Brown of his proud claim that "no UK saver" has lost out in the credit crunch.

A petition of some 35,000 names has been given to Mr Brown and countless letters have been written to key MPs across all UK parties.

The pressure paid off recently when Secretary of State Shaun Woodward was pressed by MPs into agreeing to "break the bureaucracy" to bring all PMS stakeholders together for progress. He also called directly on the Prime Minister to help.

On Tuesday, Presbyterian Moderator the Rev Dr Stafford Carson led a church delegation to meet the First Minister ahead of the visit to Downing Street.

Earlier this week, First Minister Peter Robinson said in the Assembly that he was "keen that when we meet the Prime Minister later this week, we can leave with some firm decisions as to his Government's intentions".

He also noted that under current legislation, those with less than £20,000 in the PMS "will be unlikely to get more than 30 pence in the pound for their savings", adding that this is the area "into which the Prime Minister must look most closely".

Mr Robinson said they would be pressing for help similar to that given to the Dunfermline Building Society, which was bailed out by banks in which the Government had a major shareholding.

The Government has rejected such calls to date, saying that PMS savers were in fact investors and that as such they should have known the value of their "investments" could drop in value.

But SDLP leader Mark Durkan said this week that the Government and FSA could not on the one hand slam the PMS for taking money in the form of "deposits" and yet still wash its hands of PMS members because they were "investors".

His party's finance spokesman Declan O'Loan yesterday echoed the comments as he voiced his support ahead of today's crunch meeting.

The PMS administrator is currently sending out letters to savers with a mandatory update on his review of its investments. In it he makes the same point, highlighting that the PMS rulebook repeatedly speaks of "savings" as opposed to investments.

Ulster Unionist leader Sir Reg Empey slammed HM Treasury for writing to him in recent days to tell him they were, as he saw it, "doing nothing" about the PMS situation. "I will be informing the First and Deputy First Minister that they will need to appeal to Mr Brown for help over the head of HM Treasury," he said.

HM Treasury is working on a report on the impact of the legislative and regulatory framework on industrial and provident societies in Northern Ireland, with particular regards to depositor protection. An interim report is now overdue by a month, though it is ultimately expected to recommend significant changes.

It is understood the issue of devolution and policing will also play a significant part in the meeting with Mr Brown.


The full article contains 575 words and appears in n/a newspaper.
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• Last Updated: 17 June 2009 8:25 AMDate:

• 17 June 2009

Toastandbutter

PMS is on working lunch today sometime after 1.30pm on BBC2 according to News Letter

Ballymackeonan

On the BBC news website, possible sale to a bank:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/8104905.stm

ballyblack

PMS working group is agreed by PM

The Prime Minister has agreed to set up a working group aimed at saving the collapsed Presbyterian Mutual Society.
It will include representatives from the Treasury and two Stormont departments.
The group is expected to bring forward a series of proposals by this September.
The plan was unveiled during a meeting Gordon Brown had with the first and deputy first ministers at Downing Street on Wednesday.
The Stormont departments to be involved in the working group are the Department of Finance and Personnel and the Department of Enterprise and Trade.
First Minister Peter Robinson said the government now accepted it had to act to help PMS savers, describing the working group as a "great step forward".
Earlier on Wednesday a progress report from PMS administrators PricewaterhouseCoopers indicated two parties were interested in a buy-out.
Neither was named in the report. However, previously the Ulster Bank has been linked to a possible purchase.
A report on the conduct of the society's directors is understood to be close to completion.
It should be sent to the Department of Enterprise within the coming weeks.
Also on Wednesday, PricewaterhouseCoopers revealed that the value of the society's property portfolio has slipped to £89m - 32% less than the original purchase price.






http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/8105819.stm


also;

http://u.tv/News/Brown-sets-up-PMS-working-group/7eb5308f-9d65-4565-934f-423f4efc2ee3#


Belfast Telegraph;

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/pm-offers-hope-to-presbyterian-fund-savers-after-talks-14342590.html


.

Mark789

ballyblack wrote: »

PMS working group is agreed by PM

The Prime Minister has agreed to set up a working group aimed at saving the collapsed Presbyterian Mutual Society.
It will include representatives from the Treasury and two Stormont departments.
The group is expected to bring forward a series of proposals by this September.
The plan was unveiled during a meeting Gordon Brown had with the first and deputy first ministers at Downing Street on Wednesday.
The Stormont departments to be involved in the working group are the Department of Finance and Personnel and the Department of Enterprise and Trade.
First Minister Peter Robinson said the government now accepted it had to act to help PMS savers, describing the working group as a "great step forward".
Earlier on Wednesday a progress report from PMS administrators PricewaterhouseCoopers indicated two parties were interested in a buy-out.
Neither was named in the report. However, previously the Ulster Bank has been linked to a possible purchase.
A report on the conduct of the society's directors is understood to be close to completion.
It should be sent to the Department of Enterprise within the coming weeks.
Also on Wednesday, PricewaterhouseCoopers revealed that the value of the society's property portfolio has slipped to £89m - 32% less than the original purchase price.






http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/8105819.stm





.

Some good news I think.

Mr B probably not too happy about Auntie Beeb giving PWC the credit for his work.

deserts4

1. I am sympathetic to those who lost money

2. Do I believe the Gov should bail out PMS? - no

3.Why not?- on basis on media reports the PMS were
dabbling into too much risk with savers rainy day
money - a group who would be risk adverse

4.Who should bail out savers - the Pres. church should
put their hands in their pockets

5. Was the PMS not a seperate legal identity to
Church?- probably yes however I suspect
this was the only way that a mutual could be set up.
In reality a fine line between two organisations

6. Who is to blame? I am fed up with senior pres
ministers passing the buck and blaming the
government for the PMS's very poor decisions
and the risks taken with Grannys money.Lets have
some honesty

goodbyepci

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/pm-offers-hope-to-presbyterian-fund-savers-after-talks-14342590.html

purt

deserts4 wrote: »

1. I am sympathetic to those who lost money

2. Do I believe the Gov should bail out PMS? - no

3.Why not?- on basis on media reports the PMS were
dabbling into too much risk with savers rainy day
money - a group who would be risk adverse

4.Who should bail out savers - the Pres. church should
put their hands in their pockets

5. Was the PMS not a seperate legal identity to
Church?- probably yes however I suspect
this was the only way that a mutual could be set up.
In reality a fine line between two organisations

6. Who is to blame? I am fed up with senior pres
ministers passing the buck and blaming the
government for the PMS's very poor decisions
and the risks taken with Grannys money.Lets have
some honesty

Damn right

Bannside_2

Not sure if this has already been posted but here is a link to the interim report from the administrator (over £200K in legal expenses so far.....administration is not cheap!)

http://www.presbyterianmutualsociety.co.uk/files/Administrator's%20progress%20report%20June%2015%2009%20FINAL.pdf