Harriett Baldwin will tomorrow (October 20) call for fair treatment for thousands of independent financial advisers whose livelihoods are threatened by their regulatory body. And the MP warned that UK small investors could be lumped with a £1.7bn bill if changes proposed by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) come in to effect. Harriett will lead a debate looking at the impact of a recent consultation carried out by the FSA into the workings of independent financial advisers (IFA). If the changes come into effect many small, established financial services firms will be forced out of business. There are about 45,000 IFAs in the country with many operating as sole traders. The costs to implement these changes will cost up to £1.7 billion, according to independent analysts. The research claims that these costs will be passed on to customers and as a direct result, the majority of adviser firms expect a reduction in turnover. The FSA consultation targets two key areas which will affect the operation of small firms. Each IFA will be forced to sit an exam, regardless of experience and advisers will have to charge for their services rather than claw their costs back through commissions. Harriett has called for the debate to try and highlight the issue and force the FSA to consider alternative approaches. She commented: “I have been watching this proposal develop over the last two years and when I was elected to parliament several IFA businesses visited me at my constituency surgery to complain. “Many are worried that the new FSA standards will be so demanding and expensive for the industry that they will actually put IFAs out of business. The only winners in this review will be the high street banks and large investors. “I am also concerned that, at a time when we are urging people to make better provisions for retirement, many will be put off by the FSA’s new commission proposals. “The Financial Services Authority (FSA) is keen to raise the standards of financial advice but is doing so in a prescriptive and heavy handed way. “At a time when the FSA is being abolished it seems like an appropriate time to debate this issue.” Harriett Baldwin added: “I understand that this is the first opportunity parliament has had to discuss this issue and I hope that the industry will take a long hard look at the way it will impact on the vital small businesses which are the life blood of the sector.”