(1) The Treasury may by order prohibit ring-fenced bodies from -

(a) entering into transactions of a specified kind or with persons falling within a specified class;

(b) establishing or maintaining a branch in a specified country or territory;

(c) holding in specified circumstances shares or voting power in companies of a specified description.

(2) In deciding whether to make an order under this section imposing a prohibition, the Treasury must -

(a) have regard to the risks to which a ring-fenced body would be exposed if it did the thing to which the prohibition relates, and

(b) consider whether the doing of that thing by a ring-fenced body would make it more likely that the failure of the body would have an adverse effect on the continuity of the provision in the United Kingdom of core services.

(3) An order under this section may be made only if the Treasury are of the opinion that the making of the order is necessary or expedient for the purpose of protecting the continuity of the provision in the United Kingdom of core services.

(4) An order under this section may in particular -

(a) provide for any prohibition to be subject to exemptions specified in the order;