Stakeholder

The UK Government and NI Executive have come under fresh pressure to re-examine their response to the collapse of the Presbyterian Mutual Society (PMS) after leading church figures and Conservative Leader David Cameron MP called on them to take action to alleviate the plight of savers. Nearly 10,000 savers were hit by the collapse of the society, which was put into administration last November.

Demonstrating solidarity with the PMS in a joint statement the leaders of the other three main churches, Cardinal Sean Brady (Catholic Archbishop of Armagh), Archbishop Alan Harper (Anglican Archbishop of Armagh) and Rev. Alan Ferguson (President of the Methodist Church) said:

“We have become increasingly aware of the difficulties faced by people whose access to their savings has been blocked by the Presbyterian Mutual Society being placed in Administration.

 Since assistance has been offered to others, it is our hope that the Northern Ireland Executive and the UK Government will take urgent action to resolve these difficulties”.

The church leaders’ statement came in the wake of David Cameron MP’s high profile visit to Northern Ireland as part of his Cameron Direct project. When questioned by an audience member what he would do to help the savers in the Presbyterian Mutual Society, Mr Cameron said in his view the government needed to look again.

Recognising technical issues why the PMS wasn’t receiving the help of government Mr Cameron went on to say “I do understand the real sense of unfairness that people feel because they look at, say the Dunfermline Society in Scotland, or they look at Northern Rock or they look at other organisations and they say; ‘hold on, we’re all part of the United Kingdom, we’re all part of this family. Why is this financial organisation not being helped?’

 Mr Cameron outlined the current difficulties facing the UK exchequer but committed himself to examining the issue in the event of a Conservative Government.

He said:  ”I cannot stand here and make spending promises, but what I can tell you is that if I were the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, I would have a really good look to whether we are treating these people fairly: because I think they do have a case to say, hold on a second, this is a UK organisation, guarantees should be extended to it rather than to other organisations, and it was the very extension of the guarantee to the other financial organisations that actually caused it’s difficulties.

Concluding his remarks on the issue the Conservative Leader said, “I think there is a real case for the Prime Minister to look again and I would urge him to do so.”