222.The Asset Protection Scheme (APS) was announced by the Treasury in January 2009. Under the terms of the APS the Treasury provides, in return for a fee, protection against future credit losses incurred by an eligible UK-incorporated authorised deposit-takers on one or more portfolios of defined assets.
223.This section gives the Treasury the power to require information or documents it reasonably requires from participants or proposed participants in the APS or related schemes (‘qualifying schemes’).
224.Subsection (2) defines the asset protection scheme as the scheme which was subject to a statement made by the Chancellor of the Exchequer to Parliament on 26 February 2009.
225.Subsections (3) and (8) enable the Treasury to specify in an order that this section applies to schemes that the Treasury considers correspond to, or are connected with, the asset protection scheme. The section also applies to information or documents required in relation to the agreements entered into with participants in connection with the asset protection scheme or a qualifying scheme (subsection (4)).
226.Subsections (5) and (6) allow the Treasury to specify when and where the information and documents should be provided, and the form the information should take.
227.The Treasury can seek to enforce the requirements under this section by way of an injunction, or in Scotland, by way of an order for specific performance.