2012.01.18

On the EU agenda this spring

With snow falling outside our office, NFU is looking forward to what spring holds. One issue on our agenda will be whistle-blowing, in relation to two different EU directives; CRD IV and MiFID.

Whistle-blowing is all about ensuring that early warnings from the bottom and up will reach the competent supervisory authority. NFU is of the firm belief that employees are the first to recognize a systemic failure or a risky business, since it is part of their day-to-day-operations. We need whistle-blowing systems, and they must protect the finance employees who report misconduct.

We are also awaiting the Insurance Mediation Directive (IMD), in all likelihood including regulation on as sales vs. advice and professional qualifications. There is no proposal yet, but when it comes (and it will), NFU will make sure that insurance sector employees’ perspectives are taken into account. These issues are also on the agenda for the banking sector, within MiFID.

In addition, we will continue to closely follow the discussion on financial taxation – even though an agreement on this seems very far away.