Mansion House 2024
On 14 November 2024, the Chancellor set out in a speech at Mansion House the government’s vision to grow and enhance the competitiveness of the UK’s world-leading financial services sector.
The Chancellor placed the UK’s world-leading financial services sector at the heart of the government’s growth mission and set out her plan to deliver secure and sustainable growth on the platform of stability, investment and reform.
The government will work in partnership with industry, regulators and other stakeholders to create the conditions to grow the UK’s financial sector and seize the opportunities of the future.
A full list of the measures that form the Mansion House package is as follows:
Stability – confidence to invest
Growing the economy and financial services sector starts with stability. The Budget provided economic stability for the long-term, focusing on vital public investment and putting the public finances back on a firm footing – essential for strength and stability in our financial markets.
That stability provides the certainty for businesses to plan for the future and have the confidence to invest here in the UK – growing their businesses and the economy.
And that foundation provides the vital precondition for the government to move forward, to increase private investment and reform the economy to drive growth.
Investment through financial services
More investment is how we spur the innovation and growth that will boost our economic capacity and efficiency, and will create new opportunities for people across the UK.
Today, the Chancellor set out wide-ranging government plans, focused on attracting investment from across the world and increasing private investment in the UK to grow the economy:
-
As part of the Industrial Strategy, the government is developing the first ever Financial Services Growth and Competitiveness Strategy, to be published in the Spring. The strategy will take a clear-eyed approach, focusing on growing and enhancing the competitiveness of the financial services sector. The government has published a call for evidence to inform development of the Financial Services Growth & Competitiveness Strategy.
-
Publishing the interim report of the Pensions Investment Review which puts forward proposals to deliver a major consolidation of the UK pension system that seeks to unlock billions of pounds of new investment for the UK economy and boost returns for savers.
-
Consulting on delivering a major consolidation of the Defined Contribution market and the Local Government Pension Scheme to enable greater investment in productive assets to drive investment and support saver returns. Following the consultation, we will legislate where needed in the upcoming Pension Schemes Bill. Through the government’s reformed Office for Investment, there will be a proactive approach to working with investors to ensure capital is directed to the UK’s biggest growth opportunities.
-
Delivering the foundations of a world-leading sustainable finance framework to drive investment in the green transition and deliver economic growth. This includes:
-
Publishing a consultation to gather views on the value case for launching a UK Green Taxonomy as part of a wider sustainable finance framework.
-
Announcing the intention to consult on streamlined sustainability disclosures for economically significant companies.
-
Consulting in the first half of next year on how best to take forward the manifesto commitment on transition plans.
-
Publishing a consultation response and draft legislation to bring ESG ratings providers into regulation.
-
Delivering one of the key recommendations from the recently published Transition Finance Market Review by co-launching the Transition Finance Council with the City of London Corporation.
-
Launching a set of integrity principles for voluntary carbon and nature markets on 15 November at COP29 ahead of a consultation in the new year.
-
The government is also committed to looking internationally – recognising the importance of international investment and the economic opportunities that free and open trade with the UK’s economic partners offers. This includes working closely with the USA, resetting our relationship with the EU and engaging with significant and fast-growing economies like India, China and Gulf states.
Reform to unlock innovation and growth
Alongside economic stability and higher levels of investment, the government will deliver the reforms needed to support growth.
There is a need for a rebalance of our system – retaining important protections but pushing for growth and investment. This will be enabled by:
-
Issuing new remit letters to the Financial Conduct Authority, Prudential Regulation Committee, Financial Policy Committee and Payment Systems Regulator to ensure a greater focus on growth.
-
Reaffirming the remit for the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) for the coming year. The remit confirms that the MPC will continue to target 2 per cent Consumer Prices Index inflation and defines the government’s economic policy objective to restore broad-based and resilient growth built on strong and secure foundations.
-
Driving forward the Advice Guidance Boundary Review to help households make well-informed choices about their finances. This will start with a Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) consultation on pensions by the end of the year.
-
Announcing a package of measures that will modernise the rules underpinning the Financial Ombudsman Service.
-
Consulting on abolishing the Certification Regime that applies to staff below the senior management level, so that it can be replaced with a more proportionate approach that reduces costs and frees up businesses to focus on growth.
-
Calling for the tech and telecommunications sectors to go further and faster to tackle fraudulent content on their platforms.
-
The government recognises the invaluable role of the mutual and co-operative sector in driving inclusive growth across the country. To support this, the government has already laid legislation to modernise the Building Societies Act 1986 and continued funding the Law Commission’s independent reviews of the laws governing co-operatives, community benefit societies, mutual insurers, and friendly societies. The government is now going further to help unlock the full potential of the sector:
-
Publishing a call for evidence seeking views on the merits of, and considerations for, reforming credit union common bond requirement for membership in Great Britain.
-
Writing to the Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulation Authority requesting a report on the current mutuals landscape.
-
Welcoming the establishment of an industry-led Mutual and Co-operative Business Council.
-
The UK is an innovation world leader as a result of the dynamism in the sector. The government will go further to drive innovation and support growth in the sector by:
-
Publishing a National Payments Vision, which sets out the government’s ambitions for the UK’s payments sector, to deliver world-leading payments and support the growth mission.
-
Announcing that the UK government will launch a pilot to deliver a Digital Gilt Instrument (DIGIT).
-
Publishing its response to the consultation on the Private Intermittent Securities and Capital Exchange System (PISCES), a new bespoke market for private company shares, with the intention to lay legislation establishing the PISCES regime by May 2025.
-
Announcing the next steps in the reform of UK wholesale markets regulation to support UK competitiveness and market integrity.
-
Launching a consultation on the potential for a new approach to captive insurance, with the aim of supporting the competitiveness of the UK insurance sector.
-
Considering what steps it might take to help further improve the UK’s Insurance Linked Securities offering, building on the PRA’s ongoing reforms to the UK regime.