Matthew Hill, the CII’s group chief executive, has said it is possible for the PFS to break away from the CII but said it was not guaranteed whether the body would get accredited body status if it was independent.
Speaking at the annual general meeting, Hill highlighted the question which came up frequently was whether the PFS could break away and become fully independent.
He said if that was what members wanted then it “was possible” but he said if there was going to be a debate about this particular question, fundamentals of the question needed to be considered.
Hill explained: “Many of the things that PFS members value - chartered status, qualifications, the SPS (statement of professional standing) - they are all delivered through the infrastructure of the CII, that can be replicated under other arrangements.
“Take the SPS, for example, the CII delivers the SPS. We the CII is the accredited body by the FCA for the purposes of the SPS. If the PFS wished to set itself up independently, it would need to find a way to replicate those arrangements and secure accredited body status, either by partnering with somebody else or by investing in the ability to do that for itself.
"That is not straightforward. That would be very expensive and take time three, maybe four years, and even then, it's not guaranteed that the PFS would get accredited body status.”
He went on to say this would be “risky” and “time consuming” for the PFS but reiterated that it was possible.
Hill added: “Similarly, with qualifications, the CII holds the awarding body status for PFS qualifications. The CII is the body that is regulated by Ofqual. For that purpose, the PFS could replicate that if it wanted to, but it would take time, and it's not certain. And in the meantime, PFS members who depend on those qualifications and the SPS, would have to do something to fill the gap.
“And finally, chartered status, the chartered designations that many of the people in this room have, come from the CII Royal Charter. And if people wanted to go to CC, for example, which lots of people have said that they'd like to do, it's a different set of chartered designations."
Hill said he did not raise these issues as a point to say 'stay with the CII', although he said this was his view, but rather to make sure members know it is not as simple as it may seem.
"It isn't as simple as saying, 'let's be free and tomorrow you would be'. It isn't like that and that's something that members need to have in mind when they're thinking about this particular issue,” Hill added.
He highlighted the CII was not the PFS’s enemy and said it was there to deliver mutually in the benefit of members of the institute.
