Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards

(PCBS).

Terms of reference

The Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards was established by the UK parliament to:

A. Consider and report on:

1. Professional standards and culture in the UK banking sector, taking account of regulatory and competition investigations into the LIBOR rate-setting scandal.
2. Lessons to be learned about:
   1. Corporate governance.
   2. Transparency.
   3. Conflicts of interest.
   4. Their implications for regulation and for UK government policy.

B. Make recommendations for legislative and other action.

Final report

The Commission's 2013 report was designed to address:

1. Making the individual responsibility of senior bankers a reality.
2. Reinforcing each bank's own responsibility for its own soundness and the maintenance of its standards.
3. Creating better functioning and more diverse banking markets.
4. Reinforcing regulators' responsibility to exercise judgement in deploying their powers.
5. Specifying the responsibilities of the UK government.

The Commission's report setting out its conclusions and recommendations can be downloaded here: PCBS final report June 2013.

Subsequently some of the Commission's proposals were incorporated into the Financial Services (Banking Reform) Act 2013.

However a number of areas of concern remain to be implemented effectively.

Note

The Association of Corporate Treasurers gave both written and oral evidence to the Commission. Justin Welby, a member of the Commission, was Lord Bishop of Durham on his appointment and became the Archbishop of Canterbury before it reported. A former Treasurer of Enterprise Oil, he is a Fellow of the ACT.

See also

• Banking Standards Review
• Culture
• LIBOR