New Statesman Scotland

Fred Woollard, the Australian who has set his heart on demutualising the gigantic Scottish mutual insurance group Standard Life, tripped up on a procedural nicety in his first bid to get "members" to vote for conversion of their assets.

The Standard Life leaders took their initial victory as a salutary lesson to the impertinent policyholder who has the cheek to live in Monaco rather than Morningside. They misjudge him. Woollard says he has vowed to redouble his efforts. He is teaming up with all those in Edinburgh financial circles who regard themselves as outside the establishment. One name mentioned is that of Peter de Vink, the Dutch deal-maker. Woollard could not have selected a better person to upset the forces of complacency. De Vink is one of nature's outsiders, but energetic and tenacious.

The case for demutualising Standard Life's billions of assets is simple: such a reform would enrich every policy-holder and every member of staff. The successor proprietory plc would be far more efficient, if the example of all previous demutualisations are repeated.

Standard Life's board argue that the exemption from having to pay dividends is a huge saving for policy-holders. Strange that not one of them argues for the conversion into mutuals of any of the plcs of which they are directors. There is no history of public companies evolving into mutuals. Standard Life came into existence before British company law had matured. It is sad to see a glorious anomaly about to be lost in the sea of plcs. Standard Life will expend many millions in consultants' fees and adverts, but it will lose. If, perhaps, Scottish Widows had not converted, Standard would not look so isolated.

Everyone prefers to think of himself as not being an establishment figure. That is why Woollard will topple Edinburgh's grandest institution.

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