Brexit poses a threat to the London market, says Lloyd's

London Market jobs and businesses are threatened by Brexit, according to a position paper produced by the International Underwriting Association of London (IUA), Lloyd’s and Richard Brindle, Fidelis group chief executive. 

In the publication, the market leaders warn that, should the UK decide to leave Europe, there would be a high risk of job losses, which could affect both the 34,000 people employed directly in the city’s commercial insurance sector and the tens of thousands employed in service companies and elsewhere in the UK. 

As well as this, the paper also points out that a number of underwriting companies “are already making contingency plans to move elsewhere if Britain votes to leave the EU”, and that “foreign capital is likely to leave for more trade-friendly jurisdictions”. 

Lloyd’s chief executive Inga Beale commented: “Lloyd’s firmly believes that to remain part of the EU is in the best interests of the Lloyd’s market and of the wider London insurance market, which contributes £12bn to the UK economy and employs over 34,000 people in London alone.” 

The paper highlights that EU membership grants the London Market “a single point of access to a vast community of business and consumers, as well as a single regulatory regime and the ability to attract the best talent from across Europe”. On that same line, the paper also points out that “insurance companies that stay in the UK following a vote to leave will continue to be subject to EU regulatory standards, but without any say in how they were formed”, and that “those companies will be also be forced to re-arrange cross-border insurance trade deals with almost all significant continental markets”.  

IUA chief executive Dave Matcham said: “Feedback from our members clearly shows that the benefits of EU membership are highly valued and the possibility of these advantages disappearing is of grave concern. An IUA member survey shows at least six firms would reconsider the legal status of their London operations in the event of a leave vote, though there may be others. Passporting rights within the single market are particularly important, ensuring that firms are not obliged to maintain expensive capital holdings in each of the EU member states in which they operate.”