Payments Council publishes response to the OFT’s review of progress
11 Aug 2009
The Payments Council today (11 August 2009) presents its response to the Office of Fair Trading’s Review of the Operations of the Payments Council, which was published on 25th March this year. A full copy of the letter from Brian Pomeroy, Chairman of the Payments Council, to the OFT can be obtained from www.paymentscouncil.org.uk.
The OFT Report was largely positive, concluding that a further full-scale review of the Payments Council is not necessary and praising the Payments Council’s National Payments Plan for delivering positive change, particularly with regard to improved openness and transparency.
The report made several recommendations, in response to which the following actions are being taken by the Payments Council:
- Regular two-year reviews - the Payments Council will undertake and publish a bi-annual progress review using criteria set out in the OFT’s report* to meet our openness and accountability objectives.
- Further encouragement of innovative ideas from the small business market – the Council will actively explore ways of further encouraging innovation, working in close collaboration with its SME User Forum.
- Review of Council membership for vendors and other non-payment service providers – the Council will act to enhance interaction with vendors and other infrastructure providers. This may include the creation of a new forum with an express mandate to generate and understand fresh ideas for payment innovation.
- Role of Payments Council in Faster Payments (and other delivery projects) roll-out – the Council has re-stated to the OFT that its prime responsibility is to ensure the delivery of stable, fully-functioning and resilient central payments infrastructure whilst making it possible for banks and building societies to offer the benefits to the maximum number of customers. Our role is to provide strategic direction; we are looking, however, at how we can provide regular reports and objective information about the progress of new schemes and roll-out of services to customers by individual banks and building societies.
ENDS
For further information, contact the Payments Council press office on 020 7711 6316 or press@ukpayments.org.uk
NOTE TO EDITORS
* A copy of The Office of Fair Trading’s March 2009 report Review of the Operations of The Payments Council is available from www.oft.gov.uk/shared_oft/reports/financial_products/oft1071.pdf
The Payments Council is the organisation that sets strategy for UK payments. It has been established to ensure that UK payment systems and services meet the need of users, payment service providers and the wider economy.
The Payments Council has three core objectives: to have a strategic vision for payments and lead the future development of co-operative payment services in the UK; to ensure payment systems are open, accountable and transparent; and to ensure the operational efficiency, effectiveness and integrity of payment services in the UK.
The Payments Council is a membership organisation funded by its members, with an independent chairman. It was set up in March 2007 and currently has 27 members; on the Board sit 11 banking representatives and four independent Directors as well as the chairman. The principal UK payment schemes – Bacs, CHAPS and Cheque & Credit Clearing Companies, LINK Scheme as well as the UK Domestic Cheque Guarantee Card Scheme, the Belfast Bankers' Clearing Company Limited and the Currency Clearings – have entered into a contract with the Payments Council which sets out their respective rights and duties towards each other. Under the contract, schemes are required to report regularly to the Payments Council Board: the Board is able to make decisions that are binding on scheme members in order to implement its strategy.