Dozens of City bosses including Sir Jonathan Symonds and Julia Hoggett have backed the proposal for a “British ISA” , which would see tax-free savings rules changed to encourage investment in UK firms.
In a letter to Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, the Capital Markets Industry Taskforce called for more reforms to allow for greater investment in UK-listed companies. As well as Hoggett, who chairs the task force, and Symonds, the letter was signed by big City names including Legal and General CEO Sir Nigel Wilson, HSBC chief Noel Quinn, Vodafone boss Margherita Della Valle and Burberry and Tesco chair Gerry Murphy.
“The UK has remarkable companies and remarkable potential, but we do not invest in ourselves,” the letter said.
Among the ideas suggested to boost investment in UK companies was a “British ISA”, which would offer tax incentives for those who invest their savings in British companies, while savings in foreign firms would not get the same tax breaks.
“We believe the British ISA proposal mooted in recent weeks merits careful consideration as it could play a material role in incentivising retail savers to allocate a proportion of their capital to invest in the UK economy while addressing the urgent need to provide British businesses with access to the domestic capital that they need to grow and flourish,” the letter said.
The Chancellor will deliver his Autumn Statement on Wednesday 22 November. During the Spring Budget in March, he promised that the Autumn Statement would include measures to boost City investment, amid fears that companies, especially in the tech sector, were leaving London for New York.
