UPCOMING POLICY DISCUSSIONS
Dinner Discussion with José Manuel Campa, Chair and Adam Farkas, Executive Director, European Banking Authority
Monday 7 October 2019
European Financial Forum is delighted that new Chairman of the European Banking Authority, José Manuel Campa, and Executive Director, Adam Farkas, will join a special dinner discussion to explore the latest thinking of the EBA. This will also provide an excellent opportunity for the new Chairman to meet key figures in the London market for a topical exchange of views.
Defining and Protecting Vulnerable Consumers in Regulated Markets
Tuesday 15 October 2019
Protection of vulnerable customers is moving ever higher up the agenda of all regulatory authorities and establishing a consistent approach to identifying this group will be paramount to maintaining the stability and predictability of the regulatory framework.
European Policy Forum's Regulatory Best Practice Group will welcome a panel of speakers, chaired by Dame Deirdre Hutton, Chair of the CAA, including Lindsey Fussell, Consumer Group Director at Ofcom, Gillian Guy, Chief Executive of Citizens’ Advice, and Caroline Normand, Director of Policy of Which?, to discuss this subject.
2019 Cumberland Lodge Financial Services Summit
Thursday 7 to Friday 8 November 2019
European Financial Forum will host its Annual Financial Services Policy Summit at Cumberland Lodge on the theme of Financial Services in Europe and the World. Sessions will explore global regulatory developments; opportunities for the asset management industry; risk, digitalisation and market change; a look at the new European Commission; what an UK-EU financial services relationship will look like post-Brexit; the future of multilateralism; and a more diversified global economic system. The Summit provides an excellent opportunity for European and international leaders in the provision of financial services to explore future policy and regulatory options in a constructive, trusted and congenial environment.
VIEW IDEAS AND ADVICE
TIF's Response to HM Treasury's Infrastructure Finance Review
June 2019
The Infrastructure Forum submitted its response to HM Treasury's Infrastructure Finance Review on Wednesday 19 June 2019. The Forum set up a Working Group, chaired by Paul Smith and Jon Dames, Partners at CMS, charged with responding to this consultation comprised of infrastructure finance experts from across the industry. The Working Group has considered the questions posed by the consultation and has drawn on the significant body of work published by The Infrastructure Forum to date on this subject, on the basis of which it has made a series of recommendations to rebuild public trust in the private financing of infrastructure and develop a new framework for financing infrastructure.
Rebuilding Partnerships in Infrastructure Investment
March 2019
The report - an initial response to HM Treasury's Infrastructure Finance Review - says that Government should use already-announced measures to boost private finance in infrastructure and keep investment flowing over the next two years. It warns investors are in “hold and retreat mode” because of political uncertainty and regulatory pressure on utility returns. There is a risk that while the Government ponders the eventual future framework for private investment in infrastructure, investors themselves will turn to other markets. Government could mobilise some £135bn in private capital using existing arrangements including, the UK Guarantees Scheme, Statutory Loans, pensions investment, a Third Country Agreement with EIB, the Regulated Asset Base Model, Community Contracts and the Department for Transport's Market-Led Proposals scheme.
Consumer Engagement and the Limits of Switching
Tuesday 12 March 2019
The discussion paper published by EPF's Regulatory Best Practice Group comprises of three papers: Charlotte Chase, Policy Analyst at EPF, considers whether switching is the best measure of market competition and the impacts this has on regulatory policy; Professor Martin Cave, Chair of Ofgem, explores the tools available to regulators to encourage switching, which are particularly important in overcoming the effects of price discrimination; and Cathryn Ross, Group Regulatory Affairs Director at BT, has examined how rapidly changing markets will require a different approach from regulators.
Sustainable Procurement: A Vision for UK Infrastructure
Wednesday 13 Feburary 2019
Lack of visibility of public sector projects is driving many of the unsustainable behaviours that led to the collapse of major government outsourcer Carillion in January 2018 and has left other major contractors in a fragile state.
David Ferroussat, Development Procurement Director at Heathrow Airport Limited, chaired the cross-sector Working Group of The Infrastructure Forum responsible for the report which has found that less than 8% of projects and programmes included in the Infrastructure and Project Authority’s National Infrastructure and Construction Pipeline are sufficiently certain for contractors to invest to deliver them.
The key recommendations set out by the Infrastructure Forum seek to create the right environment for investment to overcome these challenges.
More information about our policy discussions can be found here