New laws will aim to protect savers

The Government today set out a series of measures in the Queen’s Speech to toughen up protection for savers and ensure high street banks will face legal sanctions if they fail to treat customers fairly.

At the state opening of Parliament outlining the legislative programme for the next 12 months, the Queen said: “My Government’s overriding priority is to ensure the stability of the British economy during the global economic downturn.

“My Government is committed to helping families and businesses through difficult times.”

Written into law will be the plan to increase the protection of depositors’ savings to £50,000 and there will be a strengthening of the powers to crack down on banks that fail to follow the code of practice for dealing with customers.

This could mean heavy fines for banks which, for instance, foreclose on loans to businesses and individuals without proper notice.

However, the speech was set to be overshadowed by the escalating row over Commons speaker Michael Martin. Mr Martin’s job was hanging in the balance today as he prepared for a showdown with furious MPs over the Scotland Yard raid on Damian Green’s parliamentary office.

Mr Martin was due to try to justify allowing police to carry out the search - which many regard as a breach of parliamentary privilege - after the Queen’s speech.

A Bill will introduce a nationwide Savings Gateway Account, offering savings incentives worth up to £300 for about eight million people on low incomes.

A proposal to improve rights to flexible working and to improve equality in the workplace is unlikely to be welcomed by businesses at a time when they are facing particular hardships.

The Queen’s Speech also confirmed a Policing and Crime Bill will be brought forward to give the public a greater role in policing and to reduce anti-social behaviour and disorder.

Measures include tighter controls on lapdancing clubs, and a crackdown on binge drinking fuelled by cut-price drink promotions and pub events.

A Welfare Reform Bill will aim to “tackle worklessness”, reduce the number of incapacity claimants by one million and help 300,000 more lone parents and a million older people into jobs.

Gordon’s light programme

With only about a dozen Bills, the Government’s programme for the coming year is much lighter than normal.

This could be because ministers want to concentrate action on the recession, but could also pave the way for a 2009 general election.

The main Bills are:

• Banking Bill to strengthen control of the banking sector and provide greater protection for depositors.
• Savings Gateway Bill to create accounts with taxpayer-funded incentives to encourage people on lower incomes to save.
• Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Bill to give regions greater powers to promote economic development and to bring communities into local decision-making.
• Welfare Reform Bill to improve incentives for people to move from benefits to work.
• Policing and Crime Bill to raise public accountability of local policing, and to reduce drink-fuelled disorder.
• Coroners and Justice Bill to make system more responsive to the needs of victims, witnesses and the wider public; and to improve the administration of inquests.
• Borders, Immigration and Citizenship Bill to strengthen border controls and to ensure migrants earn the right to stay in the United Kingdom.
• Equality Bill to increase flexibility and equality in the workplace, including closing the pay gap between men and women.
• Child Poverty Bill to enshrine in law the Government’s commitment to eradicate child poverty by 2020.
• Health Bill to set out in law through an NHS Constitution the rights and responsibilities of patients and staff.
• Children, Skills and Learning Bill to provide right to those in work to request time for training.
• Marine and Coastal Access Bill to protect the environment, manage marine resources and create a new right of public access to the coastline.
• Business Rates Supplement Bill allowing some bigger councils to levy a supplement on the business rate and retain the proceeds to promote economic development.

By London Editor John Hipwood