Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi will commit to tackling inflation as a core priority in a speech at Mansion House today, the Financial Times has reported.
Zahawi will also rule out borrowing for tax cuts and back Rishi Sunak’s plan to overhaul post-Brexit financial regulation, in a continuation of the policies of his predecessor.
“The country should feel confident that we can, and we will, get inflation back under control,” he will say. “That means delivering sound public finances to avoid pushing up demand still further, providing help for households as they deal with the worst price rises in over a generation.”
The chancellor will also commit to repealing retained EU laws and replacing them with a more “agile approach” to ease the process of doing financial services business in the UK.
An example is the EU’s Solvency II regime, which covers insurers and stipulates how much capital companies should hold and where they can invest. The reformed policy will allow insurers more flexibility to invest in long-term assets, such as infrastructure
Following Zahawi’s speech, a Financial Services bill will be published on Wednesday prioritising the maintenance of financial stability and sound institutions for regulators, with growth and competitiveness as secondary objectives.
