Hermon Expresses Anger at Presbyterian Mutual ‘Debacle’

February 11th, 2009

“As a Presbyterian myself, I must say I was utterly dismayed and extremely angry as more and more details of the PMS fiasco unfolded.  Hundreds of Presbyterians throughout North Down trusted the Presbyterian Mutual Society to invest their savings wisely and have been seriously let down by the Society.

Amongst those who feel extremely aggrieved by the activities of the PMS are members of Shore Street Presbyterian Church.  I welcomed the opportunity to meet with a representative group of them on Monday to discuss what further action I could take to assist in the recovery of the money invested with PMS. 

As well as writing immediately to the Financial Services Authority calling for a comprehensive and transparent investigation into PMS, I’ve also asked the local Trade & Investment Minister, Arlene Foster, to respond to specific enquiries.  These included a request for the disclosure of any bonuses or salaries paid to the Directors of the Society in the months immediately preceding it going into administration last November.

Given the seriousness of this matter for thousands of Presbyterians across Northern Ireland, I shall certainly be striving to work together with public representatives from other political parties, including the DUP, to ensure we get the very best outcome for savers and investors with PMS.  We really have to ensure that lessons are learned from this debacle and what happened within PMS never happens again.”
 

Entry Filed under: Press Statements