As Britain’s new Prime Minister familiarises himself with 10 Downing Street and starts to appoint his cabinet, the Innovate Finance policy team brings you an afternoon update on the election results and what they mean for FinTech.
Our analysis includes details of a new cohort of MPs who have worked in FinTech, the latest on Ministerial appointments and responsibilities, what we expect from Keir Starmer’s first 100 days, and how we will be engaging the new Government and MPs with and for our FinTech community.
Results at 15:30 on 5 July
Notable wins/losses
- Regardless of any personal political allegiances, everyone in the FinTech community will be sad to see John Penrose lose his seat; John has been Parliament’s biggest champion of Open banking, Open Finance and Smart Data.
- The Cities of London and Westminster constituency has returned a Labour MP for the first time, Rachel Blake. The former HM Treasury policy adviser received a 2,712 majority.
- This new Parliament will deliver a cohort of newly elected MPs with either an interest or professional background in FinTech. We’ve included some new FinTech names taking to the green benches below.
- Luke Charters - York Outer (Lab) - previous roles included Remote (Head of Fraud and Compliance) and Financial Conduct Authority (Strategy Lead, Payments)
- Matthew Patrick - Wirral West (Lab) - worked at Pay.UK (Fraud and scams)
- Samantha Nibblett - South Derbyshire (Lab) - told The Guardian (June 2024) that she wants to “attract FinTech companies to South Derbyshire”
- Kanishka Narayan - Vale of Glamorgan (Lab) - FinTech start-up adviser and investor
- Callum Anderson - Buckingham and Bletchley (Lab) - formerly of the City of London Corporation (Senior Business and Policy Adviser) and London Stock Exchange (Regulatory Strategy Manager)
They join Alistair Strathern (Lab), who entered Parliament in a by-election last year and previously worked for OakNorth and the Bank of England.
We are delighted that for the first time we have a cohort of MPs with FinTech experience.
Webinar: Navigating the New Government
Webinar: Navigating the New Government
The first of our post-election member events will be a member-only webinar on Navigating the New Government. This is taking place on Thursday, 25 July at 1 - 2pm and we will be exploring:
- Who’s Who for FinTech in the government and Parliament;
- What the new government and Parliament means for FinTech: Policy priorities and initial in-tray, legislative plans;
- How government is approaching issues; and
- What next?: A look ahead.
All members are encouraged to register to attend here.
What happens next?
Ministerial Appointments
At the time of writing, Ministers are being appointed and we expect this to continue through the afternoon and evening and over the weekend, starting with the Great Offices of State: Chancellor, Foreign Secretary and Home Secretary. As of 15:30, Angela Rayner MP has been appointed Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and Rachel Reeves MP has been confirmed as Chancellor.
Other key posts to look out for in relation to FinTech include the Economic Secretary to the Treasury (or ‘City Minister’), and ministers for innovation and technology, education and skills, security (cyber and fraud), and business and trade.
With more than 200 new Labour MPs, and with a couple of shadow cabinet members losing their seats, we can expect some changes from Labour’s pre-election shadow ministerial team.
We will be watching to see if any new ministerial departments or responsibilities are created. Linked to this, it will be interesting to see how the Labour Party’s ‘5 missions’, which cover growth, clean energy, health, crime and opportunity for all, are translated into government and whether there will be some organisational alignment around these.
Headlines on Labour’s approach to FinTech
Labour have called financial services “one of Britain’s greatest success stories” and pledged to create the conditions to support innovation and growth in the sector. To do so, they will support new technology, including Open Banking and Open Finance while ensuring a pro-innovation regulatory framework.
Their manifesto pledges which are relevant to FinTech include:
- Regulators and regulation: A new Regulatory Innovation Office will help regulators update regulation, speed up approval timelines, and co-ordinate issues that span existing boundaries.
- Fraud: A new expanded fraud strategy to tackle various threats, including online fraud will be introduced. Labour have pledged to work with technology companies to stop their platforms being exploited by fraudsters.
- Investment: Increase investment from pension funds in UK markets and adopt reforms to ensure that workplace pension schemes take advantage of consolidation and scale. A review of the pensions landscape to consider steps to increase investment in UK markets.
For a full overview of Labour’s key pledges relevant to FinTech in their 136-page manifesto, read our analysis here.
To learn more about Labour’s plan for financial services in greater detail, see also the Innovate Finance analysis of the Labour Financial Services Review here.
Innovate Finance: Advocacy Next Steps
FinTech Plan for Government
Next week, we will be launching our FinTech Plan for Government. This document builds on our General Election Manifesto launched in November last year and outlines specific and actionable recommendations for the new government to support the continued growth of the UK FinTech ecosystem and how FinTech can help deliver the new Government's missions.
Engaging Ministers
Over the next week, we will be reaching out to new Ministers, introducing them to our sector and the work of Innovate Finance and flagging upcoming opportunities to engage with members. Where appropriate, we will also be using this correspondence to raise pressing policy issues with Ministers, ensuring the concerns of the sector are top of their in-tray.
Introduction to FinTech with new MPs
With hundreds of new MPs taking their seat on the green benches of the Commons, we will be reaching out to those with an interest in FinTech or those with experience in the sector. We will focus on raising awareness of the economic and social contributions of our sector to the nation and informing MPs of how they can assist us in delivering on FinTech’s policy and regulatory priorities during this Parliament. We will be organising opportunities for new MPs to meet with our policy team and members through various means over the coming months.
Party conferences
This year, Innovate Finance will have a bigger profile than ever before at party conference, with our FinTech Drinks Reception at the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool. More information on this will be released in due course.
Got views? Get in touch
The team wants to hear from members, stakeholders, and wider networks across FinTech as we navigate this new government. If you have views or concerns, please feel free to email us with your thoughts at policy@innovatefinance.com.
