Select committee: European Affairs Committee

Conclusion 13

1st Report - The UK-EU relationship in financial services Published 23 Jun 2022 Paragraph 103
Conclusion (the committee's words)
Although the imbalance between the number of decisions the EU has granted to the UK compared to other jurisdictions is striking, the evidence we received suggested that the impact of this on UK competitiveness has been limited. We also recognise that not all equivalence decisions are equal and that most granted to other jurisdictions are unconnected to the crucial issue (as far as the UK is concerned) of market access.

From: European Affairs Committee, 1st Report - The UK-EU relationship in financial services, paragraph 103, 23 June 2022

Government response

The government responded to the whole report on 13 October 2022 (deadline 23 August 2022).

Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.

The government welcomes the Committee's report and, in response, mainly sets out existing and planned measures, while noting rather than accepting several conclusions and stating that it stands ready to sign the UK-EU Memorandum of Understanding once the EU side is ready.

  • On the UK-EU Memorandum of Understanding on regulatory cooperation, the government "notes" the Committee's conclusions and says it is "ready to sign the MoU", but that further steps are required on the EU side. It agrees with the Committee on conclusion 20 that the MoU will be a valuable tool.
  • On a minimum annual meeting with the European Commissioner, the government "notes" the conclusion and says it "remains committed to a position of openness and cooperation". It does not commit to annual meetings.
  • The Financial Services and Markets Bill, introduced on 20 July, would introduce secondary growth and competitiveness objectives for the PRA and FCA, with annual reporting by the regulators on performance against them.
  • On repealing retained EU law, the government says each repeal will only take effect once the Treasury lays a commencing Order, and only when replacement rules are in place. It says it "does not intend to pursue change for its own sake".

Read the government's response ↗ Report an error