NEWS
News
AIFA in Parliament
AIFA’s role is to successfully lobby key policymakers and opinion formers to ensure the regulatory and business environment is positive toward our members. A significant part of this is our public affairs work, whereby we engage with key MPs, Lords and civil servants on relevant IFA and financial issues. This ranges from face-to-face discussions, providing briefings and statistics for parliamentary debates, hosting lobbying events and securing Treasury and shadow speakers at our major events. Over the years AIFA has built up very positive and constructive working relationships with politicians from across the 3 parties, ensuring our opinion is listened to and acted upon in Parliament.
In recent months we have launched 2 major research papers in Westminster which aim to shape public policy thinking. In April 2009 we published “Restoring Trust in Financial Services: Build on that which works”, which set out the latest research findings from respected, impartial, organisations on the issue of consumer trust, and outlined steps that can be taken to re-engage people with the financial services industry. The research showed that unlike all other parts of the sector, the public’s trust and confidence in IFAs goes from strength to strength. Research also confirmed that consumers show higher level of trust towards independent advisers than they do tied advisers. However perception often lags behind reality – sometimes even in policy making and regulatory circles. We therefore took the step of publishing these findings to encourage policymakers to listen to the voices of the UK public, and subsequently ‘build on that which works’.
AIFA also undertook a landmark study into decumulation, "Financial Planning Through Retirement", which was published in June 2009. This was a major initiative which produced a comprehensive, insightful industry review of the in-retirement and advice market. The paper received glowing endorsements and the output should help shape the thinking of politicians, regulators, consumer groups and the wider industry.
AIFA’s independent Chairman is the Rt Hon. John Gummer MP
John Gummer was Margaret Thatcher’s Chairman of the Conservative Party and for 16 years a minister, becoming Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, and then Secretary of State for the Environment. His experience as an international negotiator has earned him worldwide respect both in the business community and among environmentalists.
Previous to his ministerial career he was a successful businessman and Chairman of a medium sized plc.
In consecutive years, the BBC unprecedentedly awarded him the title ‘Parliamentarian who did most for the Environment Internationally’, while the NGO community called him ‘the best Environment Secretary we have ever had’.
Since leaving office he has held the positions of Chairman of the International Commission on Sustainable Consumption, Chairman of the Marine Stewardship Council and Non-Executive Director of Kidde Plc. He is currently Chairman of The Sancroft Group, Chairman of Valpak Ltd. and Chairman of Veolia UK Ltd. He is also the Non-Executive Director of Sistema-Hals, a leading real estate development company in Russia.
In December 2005 David Cameron appointed him Chairman of the Quality of Life Commission. The Quality of Life report, “Blueprint for a Green Economy”, was launched in September 2007.