Batt O'Keeffe
Ceist:35 Mr. B. O'Keeffe asked the Minister for Finance if he intends to establish a post of Ombudsman for the financial services sector in this country. [1630/96]
Written Answers. - Financial Services Ombudsman.
A scheme exists for an independent adjudicator (the Ombudsman for the Credit Institutions) to receive and consider certain types of unresolved complaints from individuals in relation to the provision of customer services by participating credit institutions in order to facilitate the satisfaction, settlement or withdrawal of such complaints. I am not aware of any dissatisfaction with this non-statutory arrangement.
I am not aware of proposals to establish a post of Ombudsman for the financial services sector generally.
Recent legislation has introduced a system of authorisation, regulation and supervision for investment intermediaries. The Stock Exchange Act, 1995, makes the Central Bank the regulatory authority for the Irish Stock Exchange and its member firms, while the Investment Intermediaries Act, 1995, makes the Central Bank and the Minister for Enterprise and Employment the regulatory authorities for other investment intermediaries.