The investigation will focus on whether the Government failed in its role as regulator to protect policyholders. An interim report will be published after 4 months with the final report available in 12 months.
"I am delighted that the Committee of Inquiry is now formally underway and we can start our real work.
"This is the first such Committee of Inquiry in 10 years which demonstrates the importance of the issues raised by the failure of Equitable Life across Europe, not just in the UK.
"All options are open in terms of the proposals the Committee might make, however, we should not raise the hopes of individual victims that this exercise will lead directly to them obtaining compensation.
"I emphasise that this is a Europe-wide inquiry and we will be looking at areas untouched by other investigations made to date, namely the implementation of EU law, comparing the adequacy of UK regulation against that in other EU countries and importantly assessing the availability and effectiveness of redress systems available cross border to victims in these circumstances.
"The importance of this cannot be overstated. If people do not feel that their pension investment is safe, what hope do we have of encouraging saving, especially in a Europe-wide market? We have to ensure confidence for the future."
