On June 11, the House of Lords EU Financial Affairs Sub-Committee (the Committee) published a letter dated May 27 from HM Treasury to the Committee in relation to the Committee’s review of the financial services sector after Brexit (the Letter).

The Letter considers a number of areas of concern for the UK regarding financial services after Brexit, including:

1. the importance of equivalence — the UK government aims to seek equivalence for the UK in a similar manner to the regimes that currently exist under EU legislation. The Letter notes that the UK and EU have a mutual interest to conclude any equivalence discussions;

2. improvements to the equivalence process — the UK government believes that this process should include transparency and appropriate consultation in the process of adoption, suspension and withdrawal of equivalence decisions, while respecting the principles of autonomy;

3. a new approach to regulation — the next phase of the future regulatory framework review will set out how the UK government intends to approach financial regulation post Brexit. The timing of this next phase is still under review and the UK government intends to provide clarity here in the second half of 2020; and

4. the need for global regulatory cooperation and leadership — the UK government should take the opportunity after Brexit to develop closer bilateral relations with jurisdictions that share a similar approach to financial services.

The Letter is available here.