UK regulators have outlined plans to tear down regulatory barriers in order to support UK growth following calls from the government.

In December 2024 the chancellor of the exchequer Rachel Reeves wrote a letter to UK regulators asking them to each propose five reforms to support its growth agenda in the coming year.

Over the coming weeks, 17 regulators will be called in to have their proposals scrutinised as the government “leaves no stone unturned to deliver growth”.

Reeves’s letter addressed, among others, the Competition and Market Authority (CMA), the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), and The Pensions Regulator (TPR).

CMA, FCA, and PRA published their responses earlier this month.

FCA response

In its response, signed by chief executive officer Nikhil Rathi, the FCA said it is already working to remove “unnecessary” regulation and reduce how much data some firms must provide, and plans to streamline its handbook following industry input on rules that could be removed or simplified; and improve accessibility and efficiency with a machine-readable version.

The Bank of England’s PRA said it would continue to reduce reporting burdens for firms and make the senior managers and certification regime more flexible.

But FCA said it could go “further” by removing the need for a Consumer Duty Board Champion now the Duty is in effect and ensuring future consultations on consumer protection ask if the Consumer Duty is sufficient rather than new rules.

Improving exports and inward investment

On improving exports and inward investment, the regulator said it would continue to work with the government, City of London Corporation and others to promote the UK – both for firms seeking authorisation and for firms exporting.

It said: “We recognise that major international investors want easier access to us and so we are establishing a presence in the United States. We will now go further and do this in Asia too.”

Long-term outcomes

In a letter signed by chair Marcus Bokkerink and CEO Sarah Cardell, the CMA said its actions for the next 12 months are set against the long-term outcomes the Authority aims to achieve, for:

  • the whole UK economy to grow productively and sustainably;
  • people to be confident they are getting great choices and fair deals;
  • competitive, fair-dealing businesses to be able to innovate and thrive.

Proposed actions

And while the regulator detailed how each will be achieved, it highlighted five specific actions that it believes will help to drive confidence, investment and growth for the coming year:

  • target markets work on ‘enabling’ sectors that drive growth across the whole UK economy;
  • drive innovation, investment and growth in digital markets through the implementation of the new digital markets competition regime;
  • support public sector savings and productivity gains by rooting out illegal bid-rigging in public procurement;
  • provide direct advice to government to support the development and implementation of its industrial strategy;
  • implement a package of cross-cutting actions to ensure the way CMA works supports its contribution to economic growth.

In a letter signed by deputy governor and CEO Sam Woods, the PRA listed actions it is already taking as well as actions it intends to take.

These include increasing the ability of the life insurance sector to invest in the UK economy as it identified “industry appetite for new facility to allow firms to make investments more rapidly while waiting for full regulatory permissions”.

PRA consultation

The PRA said it plans to consult this year on establishing a ‘Matching Adjustment Investment Accelerator’ that would reduce barriers to investment by insurance firms, enabling them to deliver more quickly on their commitments to make additional investments in the UK and so support economic growth.

TPR to step up focus on investments

TPR has not published its response to the letter, however, CEO Nausicaa Delfas has previously said she welcomed the government’s plans to increase investment in the UK by pension schemes. She said the regulator would step up its focus on investments across both defined contribution and defined benefit schemes.

Delfas said she wants to see “genuine and adaptive strategic decision making” with “clearly defined” objectives for investments and savers, a comparison of real-world returns with forecasted models and to see trustees adjust their strategy to make sure investment objectives for savers are being met.

A TPR spokesperson said: “Pension savers benefit from a strong economy. That is why we have made a number of proposals to government that will not only help to deliver better outcomes for savers, but could also benefit the UK economy.

“We must come to a collective understanding of where the barriers and opportunities are for growth in pension savers’ interests and come to some consensus on a way forward, including reducing regulatory burden where we can. We believe our proposals are an important step forward and build on the work we have already begun.”

Read the digital edition of IPE’s latest magazine