marriage and the english language December 5, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedLiving in Miami one takes multilingualism for granted. So, even though I have read about campaigns for English-only (or pro-English) laws in the US, I was stunned to read that the UK Government is proposing that spouses of UK citizens be required to pass an English test before being allowed to immigrate to the UK. This is another instance of the Brown Britishness fetish. In the foreword, Liam Byrne, the Minister of State for Borders and Immigration writes:
When a spouse applies for a visa to join their love [sic] ones in the UK, it is most commonly with the intention of making the UK a permanent home. We want newcomers who come here with the intention to settle to make a meaningful contribution to our society and to our economy. It is therefore right that we should consider ways to assist a foreign spouse’s integration into life here right from day one.
In April this year we introduced the Life in the UK test for all migrants applying to settle in the UK. With this requirement comes a growing need to promote the development of English language skills at an early stage. Having a pre-entry English requirement would send a clear signal to the spouse that they will be expected to acquire English language skills in order to remain with their loved ones in the UK on a permanent basis.
There are some unanswered questions about the precise terms of the proposed requirement. For example the consultation document states:
In particular we need to recognise that many spouses will already be either fluent in English (if they come from a majority Englishspeaking country) or at a relatively high level. We also need to consider how and whether a requirement might apply to those with mental health issues or physical impairment.
Will people immigrating from majority English speaking countries benefit from a presumption of English fluency? What about people who live in Miami?
lamfalussy reviewed December 5, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedThe Economic and Financial Affairs Council met and agreed to modify the co-operative Lamfalussy process for financial services regulation in the EU. The Council’s provisional conclusions note the need to increase input from consumers into the process. The Council:
WELCOMES the efforts already made so far by the Commission and the Level 3 committees to conduct open and transparent consultations with all interested stakeholders, but recalls its aforementioned conclusions of 5 May 2006 on the Commission White Paper, whereby it noted “also the importance of strengthening consumer input” and stressed “the need to facilitate an appropriate involvement of consumers and SMEs
In addition, the conclusions emphasise better regulation, and the need to limit gold-plating (Member States adding extra rules when they implement measures within their domestic systems) and the use of options and discretions by the Member States. And the conclusions suggest that the level 3 committees should move to qualified majority voting in order to enhance the efficiency of decisionmaking, with an understanding that the level 3 decisions are not legally binding, although non-compliers should explain their non-compliance (see also this document from CESR).
And there is no agreement on a single EU regulator or a single rule-book.
northern rock state aid December 5, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedThe Commission has approved the UK’s aid to Northern Rock (and there is an accompanying FAQ). The Press release states:
…the emergency liquidity assistance provided by the Bank of England on 14th September 2007, which was secured by sufficient collateral and was interest-bearing, does not constitute state aid. However the guarantee on deposits granted by the Treasury on 17th September, as well as the measures granted on 9th October, which provided further liquidity and guarantees to Northern Rock and were secured by a Treasury indemnity, do constitute state aid.
These aid measures can be authorised as rescue aid in line with the Community Guidelines on state aid for rescuing and restructuring firms in difficulty. Under these rules, rescue aid must be given in the form of loans or guarantees lasting no more than six months, although there are certain exceptions to these rules in the banking sector, in order to allow for prudential requirements, which have been applied in this case.
Also in line with the rules, the UK authorities have given a commitment to deliver to the Commission by 17th March 2008 a plan for Northern Rock going beyond the short term rescue. If a restructuring plan were to involve state aid, it would have to be assessed on its own merits under the rules on restructuring aid.
free rice December 4, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedI just donated 500 grains of rice at free rice. Yesterday 252,053,160 grains were donated in total, and 6,025,068,330 grains have been donated since the game was started in October.
It’s not the most fun word game ever. The FAQ describes the benefits you get from “playing”:
Learning new vocabulary has tremendous benefits. It can help you:
* Formulate your ideas better
* Write better papers, emails and business letters
* Speak more precisely and persuasively
* Comprehend more of what you read
* Read faster because you comprehend better
* Get better grades in high school, college and graduate school
* Score higher on tests like the SAT, GRE, LSAT and GMAT
* Perform better at job interviews and conferences
* Sell yourself, your services, and your products better
* Be more effective and successful at your job
After you have done FreeRice for a couple of days, you may notice an odd phenomenon. Words that you have never consciously used before will begin to pop into your head while you are speaking or writing. You will feel yourself using and knowing more words.
activision-vivendi December 4, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedActivision filed a number of documents with the SEC yesterday relating to the proposed merger, including an investor presentation and a letter to employees. In addition, Activision has established a website with information on the merger for employees.
Comments on the proposed merger at Raph Koster here and here.
online games news December 2, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedActivision and Blizzard (WOW) are merging:
The combination of Activision and Vivendi Games, Activision Blizzard, will create the world’s largest, most profitable pure-play video game publisher with some of the most popular titles in the industry, including Guitar Hero®, Call of Duty®, Tony Hawk, World of Warcraft®, Starcraft® and Diablo®.
There will be a live webcast on Monday, December 3, 2007 at 8:30 a.m. ET, 2:30 p.m. Paris time, 1:30 p.m. London time. The live webcast can be accessed at www.vivendi.com and www.activision.com.
iosco technical committee on private equity November 29, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedIOSCO has published a consultation report on private equity inviting comments by 20 February 2008. The report proposes that IOSCO should study conflicts management practices in private equity transactions and that the Joint Forum study leverage in private equity transactions.
subprime fallout: moving forward November 28, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedFitch Ratings says (registration required):
Beginning in January 2008, Fitch U.S. RMBS rating process will incorporate a more extensive review of mortgage origination/acquisition practices, including a review of originator/conduit/issuer due diligence reports, and a sample of mortgage origination files. Additionally, Fitch is studying how a more robust system of representation and warranty repurchases could help to provide more stable RMBS performance.
Via Housing Wire.
fsa and financial firms' websites November 28, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedToday’s report from the FSA on its review of website financial promotions states that:
75% of the websites reviewed were of an acceptable standard; however, 25% fell short of our financial promotions standards. This is partly because firms are not placing enough emphasis on the customer journey and general website design when placing key information. In some instances general website maintenance was also lacking, resulting in out-of-date or incorrect information being provided to consumers.
The FSA has also identified problems with sponsored links on websites.
regulatory line drawing November 27, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedThe UK Government (Treasury and BERR) is consulting on the question of how to separate the functions of the OFT in respect of Consumer Credit and the functions of the FSA in relation to mortgages. The consultation responds to concerns identified by stakeholders:
Stakeholders have recently identified circumstances where some firms could potentially find themselves having to comply with both regimes simultaneously for certain types of transaction. This paper sets out the issues and the Government’s proposals for legislation to tackle these areas of potential dual regulation.
Before publishing the consultation document the Treasury and BERR discussed the issues with the Council of Mortgage Lenders, the FSA and the OFT (not apparently with any consumer groups, which raises issues about who gets to frame regulatory issues). Parts of the document are particularly technical and opaque:
In order to address these concerns the Government introduced legislation so as to disapply section 82(2) and section 82(3) wherever the modifying agreement was an RMC. In effect, this meant that the first agreement and the modifying agreement were treated as separate agreements for the purposes of the CCA. The RMC would be regulated only by the FSA and the first agreement would be subject to the CCA, where applicable. (footnote omitted)