The UK’s exit from the European Union will not necessarily mean a big clear-out of EU-derived legislation, new FCA chief executive Andrew Bailey said.
Responding to a question about the potential for deregulation post-Brexit at the FCA’s annual public meeting yesterday, Bailey said: “It is important to say that this is not going to lead to a bonfire of regulation.”
But he added that exactly what happens will depend heavily on how the UK negotiates its exit from the EU, and cannot yet be determined.
He said: “What actually will come out critically depends on the settlement the government reaches and I would say an area like financial services critically then depends on how equivalence standards work to allow trade.”
Bailey said that the FCA has set up a Brexit coordination unit, which partly draws on existing resources.
But he stressed that the regulator will keep its focus on its job despite distractions from Europe.
He said: “It is not our intention that Brexit and the work that goes around it will distract us from our obligations. We are not going to suspend the pursuit of our statutory obligations to start giving all of our time and effort to the European process because that would clearly be wrong.”
He added that while the FCA intends to provide assistance to the Brexit negotiations, the regulator will not take centre stage.
He said: “We will not be in the lead on Brexit negotiations. That is for the government.”
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