NI Presbyterian mutual society, Short of funds for withdrawal?

HOPE

:eek:

BETRAYED wrote: »

Copy of reply a despairing letter sent to HM Queen in June.
Retired schoolteacher.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/53612596@N00/4068262228/

I am sure Mr Woodward sent a compassionate response!! if other replies are anything to go by!!

crazymess

Are we heading towards our SECOND CHRISTMAS without access to our savings or will it be the Season to be Jolly??

Hopefully we will hear soon.

goodbyepci

Lady Hermon (North Down): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on the time taken by the Prime Minister's Working Group on the Presbyterian Mutual Society to report its conclusions.
Lady Hermon (North Down): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what reviews his Department has carried out of the role of the Financial Services Authority in identifying breaches and preventing losses to savers in respect of the conduct of regulated activities by industrial and provident societies in (a) Northern Ireland and (b) the UK in the last three years.

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmordbk1/91102w01.htm

Scroll down to questions 65 and 66

And scroll down further to 546 and 547

Lady Hermon (North Down): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what assistance his Department has provided to the Prime Minister's working group on the Presbyterian Mutual Society.

Lady Hermon (North Down): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on steps to assist members of the Presbyterian Mutual Society.

crazymess

The Treasury Select Committee - How it works, what it does, and its role in the Financial Crisis

You are here: Home / Articles & Videos / Articles by John McFall / The Treasury Select Committee - How it works, what it does, and its role in the Financial Crisis

09 Oct 2009

Article in the Journal of the Institute of Economic Affairs
By Rt Hon John McFall MP


...........

Therefore, in October 2008, we took the unprecedented step of calling for members of the public to send in their questions, which the Committee in turn would put to the heads of the ‘tripartite authorities’ responsible for the banking system: the Chancellor of the Exchequer; the Governor of the Bank of land; and the Chairman of the Financial Services Authority. More than 5,000 questions were received and analysed by the Committee’s staff. We put a selection of these to the authorities in what was the first, and one of the highest-profile, evidence sessions of our banking crisis inquiry. More recently, we have conducted open public meetings in different regions of the UK, which have given us a chance to hear the voices of ordinary people – how it felt to be a member of the Presbyterian Mutual Society living in Belfast, when a lifetime’s savings were put in jeopardy; or how families in Halifax who had worked for generations for the local building society viewed the conduct of the HBOS Board.



Wonder if Mr McFall is keeping an eye on developments?
Pleasing to see the use of the word "savings"

goodbyepci

Presbyterian Mutual Society

Lady Hermon: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reasons the Financial Services Authority did not investigate the financial activities of the Presbyterian Mutual Society prior to its entering administration in November 2008. [295807]

3 Nov 2009 : Column 897W
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Presbyterian Mutual Society (PMS) was registered by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment in Northern Ireland under the Industrial and Provident Societies Act 1969. As such, it was exempt from regulation by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) in respect of accepting deposits in the form of withdrawable share capital up to the statutory maximum of £20,000. Therefore, the FSA did not have cause to investigate the financial activities of the PMS prior to its entering administration in 2008. It has since been established that the PMS was conducting regulated activities which required FSA authorisation, but that it did so without having sought and obtained the necessary authorisation.


http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmhansrd/cm091103/text/91103w0027.htm#0911043000044

BETRAYED

Under section 4 of Rules of Presbyterian Mutual Society

26 Loans to the Society

The Society may borrow money for its purposes from members and others and may secure the repayment thereof by mortages and charges of the Society's property.

Lester_F

goodbyepci wrote: »

Presbyterian Mutual Society

Lady Hermon: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reasons the Financial Services Authority did not investigate the financial activities of the Presbyterian Mutual Society prior to its entering administration in November 2008. [295807]

3 Nov 2009 : Column 897W
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Presbyterian Mutual Society (PMS) was registered by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment in Northern Ireland under the Industrial and Provident Societies Act 1969. As such, it was exempt from regulation by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) in respect of accepting deposits in the form of withdrawable share capital up to the statutory maximum of £20,000. Therefore, the FSA did not have cause to investigate the financial activities of the PMS prior to its entering administration in 2008. It has since been established that the PMS was conducting regulated activities which required FSA authorisation, but that it did so without having sought and obtained the necessary authorisation.


http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmhansrd/cm091103/text/91103w0027.htm#0911043000044

In the light of which the Directors / Secretary must be held to account.

crazymess

presbyterian mutual society : 1 Written Answer
==============================================

Written Answers - Treasury: Presbyterian Mutual Society (4 Nov 2009)
[URL="mhtml:{D04F8A61-5E54-4334-8412-F1D2F2AB6917}mid://00000004/!x-usc:http://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2009-11-04a.297176.h&s=presbyterian+mutual+society#g297176.r0"]http://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2009-11-04a.297176.h&s=presbyterian+mutual+society#g297176.r0[/URL]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Working Group on the *Presbyterian Mutual
Society* will report its conclusions to the Prime Minister when all
options have been fully considered.

presbyterian mutual society : 1 Northern Ireland Assembly debate
================================================================

Northern Ireland Assembly: Enterprise, Trade And Investment: Credit Unions (3 Nov 2009)
[URL="mhtml:{D04F8A61-5E54-4334-8412-F1D2F2AB6917}mid://00000004/!x-usc:http://www.theyworkforyou.com/ni/?id=2009-11-03.4.36&s=presbyterian+mutual+society#g4.44"]http://www.theyworkforyou.com/ni/?id=2009-11-03.4.36&s=presbyterian+mutual+society#g4.44[/URL]
Arlene Foster: That is still a huge issue in *society*, and we are
reminded continually of the hardship that members of the *Presbyterian
Mutual Society* face. On 14 October 2009, the First Minister and deputy
First Minister, the Minister of Finance and Personnel and I met the
ministerial working group, which is chaired by the Chief Secretary to
the Treasury, to review progress on finding a solution to help...

presbyterian mutual society : 1 Lords debate
============================================

Banking: Mutualisation - Question (4 Nov 2009)
[URL="mhtml:{D04F8A61-5E54-4334-8412-F1D2F2AB6917}mid://00000004/!x-usc:http://www.theyworkforyou.com/lords/?id=2009-11-04a.254.0&s=presbyterian+mutual+society#g254.5"]http://www.theyworkforyou.com/lords/?id=2009-11-04a.254.0&s=presbyterian+mutual+society#g254.5[/URL]
Baroness Noakes: My Lords, does the Minister agree that *mutual* status
is no magic bullet, as we have seen from the disastrous financial
failures that occurred in, for example, the Dunfermline Building
*Society*, Equitable Life and the *Presbyterian Mutual*?

BETRAYED

Re. Presbyterian Mutual Society (In Administration)
　
Dear Prime Minister,
I am writing to you to make you aware of the hardship and suffering that is being experienced by PMS members who have not had any payment or access to their funds for over a year.
Whilst ‘wrangling’ continues and there is delay after delay in reaching a solution I wish to draw your attention to how people, many of them elderly, are suffering.
　
As chairperson of our local Village and District Senior Citizens I am very aware of the position that those who are PMS members are in.
As many of those affected live in retirement dwellings built on their farm and retained a small area of land around their home they are prevented from claiming Pension Credit. This means that on basic pension they are borrowing or begging money to pay rates, buy heating fuel and pay for electricity and phone bills.
They cannot understand that being citizens of the UK and having a devolved administration at Stormont that this state of affairs is allowed to continue.
One member has to have an eye operation and her surgeon told her that to save her sight it would best to have the operation privately. She needs £9,000 of her savings in PMS.
A retired farm labourer who is blind and lives on his own has all his savings in PMS.
He borrowed money from a neighbour to pay his £1,200 rate bill.
In a number of cases people have had to be treated for depression by their doctor.
In a late night telephone phone call to me one man gave me the impression that he was contemplating suicide.
Why did the administrator never ascertain how many of PMS members would retain their savings in a properly regulated and managed society so that those in dire need could have access to funds?
The welfare aspect of this debacle is far reaching.
One elderly lady experiencing hardship suggested to me that animals are better cared for in this state than humans.

Anyone with a case of hardship please send a short message immediately to the following.　


　
The Prime Minister - [EMAIL="privateoffice@no10.x.gsi.gov.uk"]privateoffice@no10.x.gsi.gov.uk[/EMAIL]

The Rt Hon Liam Byrne MP Chairman Of The Ministerial Working Group - [EMAIL="byrnel@parliament.uk"]byrnel@parliament.uk[/EMAIL]

The Rt Hon John McFall Mp Chairman Of The Treasury Select Committee - [EMAIL="mcfallj@parliament.uk"]mcfallj@parliament.uk[/EMAIL]

The Rt Hon Owen Paterson MP Shadow Secretary Of State For Northern Ireland - [EMAIL="patersono@parliament.uk"]patersono@parliament.uk[/EMAIL]

Minister of DETINI [EMAIL="arlene.foster@niassembly.gov.uk"]arlene.foster@niassembly.gov.uk[/EMAIL]

BETRAYED

Quote Jon_Groovy
"surely the church should be doing something to help ?"

The Church has some meagre funds available through ministers.

One minister said to me some time back that " I have had no enquiries for help. You know how members of my congregation feel about applying for charity."
The Moderator told me that all PCI money is tied up in trusts and is not available.

I have enquired at my local Social Security Office about people in need being able to obtain a "crisis loan" from the Social Fund.
I was told that this loan is only available when your life or health is endangered and could certainly not be used to pay rates.
Having savings in PMS, even though it is unavailable to you, prevents you from claiming other state benefits.