City of London Corporation Policy Chair Catherine McGuinness will tomorrow (Tuesday 25^th June) say that the US and the UK should work together to set the global agenda on financial services in parallel to negotiations on a future free trade agreement.

Speaking at the Centre for Policy Studies’ Margaret Thatcher Conference, alongside International Trade Secretary Dr Liam Fox, she will also talk about the historical importance of the City’s relationship with the US.

McGuinness recently undertook separate visits to New York and Washington, during which she discussed the prospect of closer regulatory alignment with US policymakers and stakeholders, including the US Trade Representative, US Treasury, Federal Reserve and Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

The City Corporation believes that any eventual Free Trade Agreement process should be complemented by efforts focused on deepening regulatory and supervisory relationships for the benefit of businesses and consumers on both sides of the Atlantic. It should also include provision for the development of a ‘regulatory highway’ for services across the Atlantic that will give the UK and USA an opportunity to forge joint leadership at an international level.

City of London Corporation Policy Chair Catherine McGuinness said:

“The UK and US enjoy a special relationship in many areas, and I am confident any future free trade agreement would only strengthen our relationship further.

“We look forward to any future framework having financial services at its heart. It must also lay the framework for greater cooperation on developing the international regulatory landscape.

“But before we look ahead to post-Brexit opportunities, we need to get our house in order, and resolve the question of the future UK-EU trading relationship.”

The USA is the UK’s biggest trading partner after the EU, and the two countries are the world’s biggest exporters of services. Together, they export more than $135bn of financial services a year (UK - $88bn, USA - $47bn).

The UK and USA are also the largest investors in each other’s economies, much of this facilitated through businesses in the City of London, creating hundreds of thousands of jobs on both sides of the Atlantic.

Notes to editors

The City of London Corporation is the governing body of the Square Mile dedicated to a vibrant and thriving City, supporting a diverse and sustainable London within a globally-successful UK. www.cityoflondon.gov.uk

For more information contact:

Nathan Rodgers, Media Officer

City of London Corporation

Nathan,rodgers@cityoflondon.gov.uk

0207 332 3451