The Financial Services Authority is to publish a register of possible conflicts of interest for members - and draw up a code of conduct.

Members of the authority are expected to have knowledge and experience of the financial services industry and the FSA acknowledges that may mean ’it is possible that through their employment history, existing roles or other associations, members have private interests which could result in a potential conflict of interest in matters to be considered or determined by the authority’.

Last month the authority agreed to publish on its website the rules concerning conflicts of interest.

In addition, said Treasury Minister Alfred Cannan, the authority decided it should ’produce and publish a comprehensive code of conduct on the disclosure and management of its members’ interests’.

In a written answer to a House of Keys question from Lawrie Hooper (LibVannin, Ramsey), Mr Cannan added the authority agreed: ’The approach to the management of conflicts will include public disclosure, through its website, of members’ direct interests in entities, or in groups with entities, that are regulated by the Isle of Man Financial Services Authority, whether this interest arises from an ownership interest or appointment to a role.

’The publishing of the code of conduct and of members’ interests in regulated entities will be completed during 2017.’

Under conflict of interest rules, members are required to complete a disclosure form upon appointment to record ’any personal interests, or interests of any closely related parties, that could lead to a potential conflict of interest for that member in discharging their duties for the authority’.

Those interests are currently recorded on a register - reviewed annually - that is available to authority members, the board secretary, senior staff, auditors and Tynwald members.

When a conflict of interests arises on the agenda for a meeting, information on that matter is not supplied to the authority member concerned. Each meeting also allows for previously unidentified conflicts of interest to be disclosed.

Even after a conflict of interest ceases to exist, a member would not be involved in any relevant discussions for another six months.

In reply to another question from Mr Hooper, Mr Cannan said: ’Both members and employees of the Isle of Man Financial Services Authority are allowed to own an interest in an entity regulated by the authority.

’However, that interest must be disclosed in a prescribed manner and there are restrictions that arise from the interest.’