Equitable Life victims push for full compensation

Victims of the Equitable Life scandal and the board of the company are making a final attempt to persuade the government to pay full compensation.

The Equitable Members Action Group (EMAG) is sending proposals to the government before a decision next month on how much victims will receive, according to the BBC.

The Equitable Life board has made a separate representation to financial secretary to the Treasury Mark Hoban MP calling for compensation.

Members of the group and the Equitable board want full compensation for victims, which have been put at nearly £5 billion.

But they could be offered just £400 million if the recommendations of Sir John Chadwick’s report are followed.

Parliamentary Ombudsman Ann Abraham has denounced Chadwick’s proposals as ‘unsafe and unsound’.

EMAG spokesman Paul Weir told the BBC: ‘The government should respect the parliamentary ombudsman's recommendations. It should dispose of the work of Sir John Chadwick, which we think is disgraceful. And they should pay proper compensation, not peanuts.’

The board of Equitable Life has called on the government to implement Abraham's recommendation to compensate investors for their 'relative loss' and said this figure should stand at between £4 billion and £4.8 billion.

'The new government could not have been clearer in it manifesto and its coalition agreement; it committed to follow the Parliamentary Ombudsman's recommendation,' said Equitable Life chief executive Chris Wiscarson. 'The persistent references to Sir John Chadwick's work severely undermines our confidence that government will deliver on its commitment.'