The consultation period to draft the new rules has been extensive, and we welcome the FSA's responsiveness in moderating a number of rules as originally drafted that would have been difficult to implement in practice, or unduly restrictive.
The final package of rules represents a widely anticipated focus on affordability for the borrower, and verification on the part of the lender, to ensure that lending is responsible. The CML supports this, and hopes that the rules will be underpinned by sensitive supervision to help the industry meet them in practice.
Paul Smee, CML director general, comments:
"Today's rules bring certainty. Lenders can now make firm plans to ensure that they meet the new requirements when they formally come into place in April 2014. In practical terms, the regulatory changes have already been widely anticipated and so are unlikely to create any significant additional or unexpected impacts.
"We look forward to working towards implementation with the FSA and its successor, the FCA, and hope that from a supervisory perspective the regulator will focus just as much on helping lenders and brokers to meet regulatory expectations as on enforcement action if rules are broken."
