Rory Stewart wants to set up City of London embassies across EU
City of London embassies will be set up across EU capital if Rory Stewart is elected mayor of London.
The ex-international development secretary is running as an independent mayoral candidate in the May election, after having the Conservative whip removed last year over his opposition to a no-deal Brexit.
Stewart believes as mayor of London he could play a role in fighting for greater access to European markets for the financial services sector post-Brexit.
The Financial Times reported today that he wanted to do this by setting up City of London embassies to make “very, very detailed arguments around financial services”.
He said they would be similar to Sadiq Khan’s European office in Brussels, which operates to lobby London’s interests among EU member states, and would be located in cities such as Berlin, Paris and Warsaw.
“It’s about providing the facility, the kudos, the legitimacy, authority and expertise in those areas to win those arguments because we have to win the argument now,” he said.
Speaking to City A.M., a Stewart spokesperson said it was vital for the Square Mile to stay closely in touch with the EU as Britain diverges from EU regulations.
They said: “It’s something Rory has been thinking about for a while, but he recently had a roundtable with bodies such as CityUK and the Association of British Insurers – who talked about how essential they thought this function was, and how supportive they’d be.”