City of London must say No to Singapore-on-Thames
One vision for the future of the City post Brexit is that it becomes Singapore-on-Thames, a sort of deregulated kill zone where anything goes.
Investors and all manner of rich folk (we shan’t ask how they got so rich) shall be lured to London on the promise of the sort of under-the-counter action they just can’t get on the continent.
In that way, the City will protect itself from the lure of Paris and Frankfurt and hang on to its status as a global financial centre.
Two thoughts: One is that this particular vision seems to be pushed most often by the sort of people who spend their weekends dressed up in Home Guard uniforms re-enacting battles from World War II.
And second it’s a rather pessimistic view of London’s charms. It really doesn’t need to hoist its skirt that high to attract admirers.
The Singapore-on-Thames crowd think the way forward is to cut red tape (to their mind, there are no circumstances in which a bonfire of regulation isn’t just what the doctor ordered).
In fact, London being well regulated is precisely the appeal. Rich folk do business here in the secure knowledge that they are unlikely to get legged over. The City operates under a strict rule of law that will be interpreted via tough regulators and courts if necessary.
It was good to see Barclays chief executive Jes Staley say exactly that today. Brexit, he told the BBC, gives London a good chance to define itself away from the EU, but not by ditching rules. “I wouldn’t burn one piece of regulation,” he said.
He’s right.
