APPG co-chairs Caroline Lucas MP and Clive Lewis MP, and colleagues Liz Saville Roberts MP, Claire Hanna MP, Ben Lake MP and Hywel Williams MP tabled a ‘reasoned amendment’ for 7 September 2022, to prevent the UK Government’s Financial Services and Markets Bill from passing its second reading; on the basis that it creates a renewed “objective to promote growth and competitiveness, rather than making the creation of a wellbeing economy designed to foster long-term economic resilience and prosperity its overarching objective”. The tabled amendment reads in full:
That this House declines to give a Second Reading to the Financial Services and Markets Bill because it creates a new objective to promote growth and competitiveness, rather than making the creation of a wellbeing economy designed to foster long-term economic resilience and prosperity its overarching objective, fails to introduce the future regulatory framework required to align the activities of the financial sector with the UK’s target of net zero by 2050 or with international climate obligations to limit global temperature increases to 1.5 degrees Celsius, is deficient in its requirements on regulators in respect of climate and nature outcomes, reduces democratic scrutiny and increases industry influence on rulemaking, and fails to prevent either greenwashing by the sector or investment in fossil fuels, or to ensure a rapid, stable, coordinated and just transition to a low-carbon economy, to advance financial inclusion, and to protect consumers, investors, banks, asset managers and other financial institutions against the catastrophic financial risks associated with climate and nature breakdown.
The Financial Services and Markets Bill was introduced in the House of Commons on 20 July 2022 and is intended to make updates to the UK’s regulatory framework for financial services. For progress on the Bill, please see the Government’s website: https://bills.parliament.uk/bills/3326.
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