Advocis has announced its opposition to the proposed Fair Dealing Model released today by the Ontario Securities Commission.

In a statement the association of professional financial advisors calls the FDM “an unjustified power grab that will further fragment the regulatory system in Canada.” Advocis has more than 9,000 members in Ontario.

“This smacks of regulatory opportunism in an area where the OSC has no experience or qualifications,” said Steve Howard, president and CEO of Advocis. “It seems more interested in extending its authority than in addressing the fundamental systemic problems.”

Advocis criticizes the OSC for ignoring the national accrediting bodies that set professional standards — organizations such as the Financial Planners Standards Council, the Institute of Chartered Life Underwriters, and the Association for Investment Management and Research.

Advocis says the FDM would take years to implement and would apply only in Ontario. Other provinces will likely take different approaches, and as a result there will be further fragmentation of the Canadian regulatory system.

“We’re saying ‘no’ to a power grab by the OSC, and ‘yes’ to a system of regulation that is effective and efficient across Canada,” Howard remarked.

Advocis suggests an alternative would be to build on what already exists. It says this can be achieved by giving the accrediting bodies regulatory authority for overseeing the competence and conduct of advisors (formalizing in legislation what they already do), and by requiring all advisors to qualify for accreditation as a condition of practice.

It adds that the FDM fails to address the issue of defining who is qualified to give financial advice and what standards should be in place to measure whether consumers are getting appropriate advice.

“The existing accreditation process provides assurance to consumers that they can rely on the advice they receive,” Howard said.

Advocis says the OSC model would also add significant new costs at a time when compliance expenses are already out of hand.

http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/January2004/29/c4634.html