Co-operation and information sharing

This section summarises the relevant provisions of the Act and the professional secrecy obligations applying in relation to information held by the Panel in connection with the exercise of its functions which does not fall within section 948 of the Act.

Under section 950 of the Act, the Panel must, to the extent it has power to do so, take such steps as it considers appropriate to co-operate with:

1. the FCA, the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Bank of England; and

2. regulators outside the United Kingdom having functions similar to the Panel, the FCA or the Prudential Regulation Authority, or similar to the regulatory functions of the Bank of England,

including by the sharing of information which the Panel is permitted to disclose (see below). It may also exercise its powers to require documents and information (see section 9(b) above) for this purpose.

Under section 948 of the Act, information received by the Panel in connection with the exercise of its statutory functions may not be disclosed without the consent of the individual (where it concerns a person’s private affairs) or business to which it relates except as permitted by the Act. Schedule 2 of the Act includes gateways to allow the Panel to pass information it receives to United Kingdom and overseas regulatory authorities and other persons in accordance with the conditions laid down in that Schedule. The circumstances in which this may occur include, but are not limited to, the circumstances falling within paragraph 11(b)(iv) above.

Information (in whatever form) relating to the private affairs of an individual or to any particular business not falling within section 948 of the Act which is created or held by the Panel in connection with the exercise of its functions, will not be disclosed by the Panel except as permitted in the circumstances set out in sections 948(2), (3) and (8) of the Act. A direct or indirect recipient of such information from the Panel may disclose it in the circumstances set out in sections 948(2), (3), (6) and (8) of the Act.

The Panel works closely with the FCA in relation to insider dealing and market abuse.