The financial services industry in the UK is at a crucial juncture. Our new research
report “Not with a Bang but a Whimper” – published tomorrow – highlights the decline in the UK’s competitiveness as a domicile for this sector, and the
increasing likelihood that both companies and workers will take the leap and choose to base themselves elsewhere.
Many will see this as a good thing. The economy is still recovering from the financial crisis, the eventual cost to the public purse of the bank bailouts remains unknown, and the yearly round of hated bank bonuses are impending. On the other hand, losing such a significant contributor to GDP, employment, tax revenues, and the current account balance would inevitably have serious ramifications for the UK.
Judging the net overall benefit of the financial services sector is not easy, but if the Government is to make informed policy decisions about new taxes and regulations then this is clearly a calculation that needs to be made.
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