Britain will be a safe haven for business under Labour as Europe turns to populism, Rachel Reeves has insisted.
Ms Reeves, who may become Britain’s first female chancellor after the general election this week, was writing ahead of Sunday’s French parliamentary elections, which are expected to see a large surge in the hard-Right and far-Left vote.
Writing in The Telegraph, she said: “I want investors to look at Britain and say it is a safe haven in an increasingly turbulent Europe and the rest of the world. At a time when other countries look to be tilting towards more populist, unstable politics I want Britain to be a secure and stable place where business can invest with confidence.”
Last week the Bank of England warned that the looming French election posed a threat to global financial stability and the British economy.
Officials at Threadneedle Street warned of potential market turmoil after President Emmanuel Macron called a snap poll that could hand a majority to parties that favour increased borrowing, meaning a victory would risk driving up France’s already high debt levels.
Last month several hard-Right parties made significant gains in the European Union parliamentary elections, delivering humiliating defeats to the parties of Olaf Scholz, the German chancellor, and Karl Nehammer, the Austrian chancellor, as well as Mr Macron.
‘Wealth creation at heart of vision for growth’
Ms Reeves said that wealth creation, led by the private sector, was at the heart of Labour’s vision for growth in the economy.
“I know from talking to businesses that they are ready to invest in Britain. Like me, they see the extraordinary potential we have as a country,” she said.
“The start-up firms founded here and trading with the rest of the world. The universities working with pharmaceutical companies to develop the next generation of cancer treatments. And the latest blockbusters filmed in the UK and shown on screens to millions.
“But I know they are also frustrated about the instability of the past 14 years. Too often I hear chief executives tell me that they want to put money into Britain but have been put off by the endless chaos in our politics or the red tape left untouched for years because of the paralysis in Westminster.”
Ms Reeves intends to boost the financial services sector by cutting the watchdog’s “regulatory burden”, including by streamlining some “excessively procedural rules” in the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) 10,000-page regulatory handbook.
She will also scrap overlapping rules set by the FCA, the Bank of England and the Competition and Markets Authority, and create a “regulatory innovation office” that could help regulators share data.
Ms Reeves said that if she became chancellor, she would lead the “most pro-growth, pro-business Treasury in our history”.
“It should not be the job of government alone to deliver that investment. It will require a new partnership with business,” she said.
“I want to break the minister-knows-best model of government, with business sat round the table helping to write our plans for the economy. In opposition we have opened our doors to business and in government we will do that, too.”