In the meantime, we don’t think firms should have to wait before we provide more accessible rules. That’s why have already launched a new Policy Index. [18] It is an online resource that divides policies into sectors and topic areas. For each topic area, a dedicated webpage lists relevant policy material and provides quick access links, allowing firms to find applicable policies more easily. Conclusion I’m going to conclude by reminding you that while these are our ideas about how the PRA should make policy, we really want to hear your views. That is why we have published our discussion paper on our approach to policy making. I encourage you to submit responses. If Parliament approves the changes that make up the FRF, we will consult on proposals for how we make policy. Responses to this discussion paper will help us shape those proposals. I would like to thank Austen Saunders for helping me write this speech. I would also like to thank Andrew Bailey, Charlotte Gerken, Hannah Schraer, Gareth Truran and Sam Woods for their helpful comments. Any errors are my own. 1. PRA Discussion Paper 4/22 ‘The Prudential Regulation Authority’s future approach to policy’, September 2022 2. ‘Our responses to coronavirus (Covid): regulatory measures for PRA firms’  Page 8 3. PRA Dear CEO Letter ‘Existing or planned exposure to cryptoassets’, March 2020 4. PRA Discussion Paper 3/22 ‘Operational resilience: Critical third parties to the UK financial sector’, July 2022 5.
We will have many opportunities to review areas of policy that have been fixed in legislation up to now. It will allow us to be proactive about finding opportunities to support competitiveness and growth without undermining our primary objectives. We will work hard to identify and act on them. Many factors underpin the international competitiveness of the UK as a financial centre. Most importantly, financial services are something the UK is very good at. The UK is one of the best places in the world to come if you’re looking for highly skilled people, deep and specialised financial markets, a robust legal system, and trusted institutions. It is also home to an incredibly innovative financial sector. Those are the foundations upon which the UK’s comparative advantage in financial services is built. [11] As a very large global financial centre, the UK benefits from so-called ‘agglomeration effects’. These are self-reinforcing effects which emerge when businesses cluster together in the same place. In the UK’s case, the advantages that attract firms to come to do business here – deep and varied markets and a huge supply of talented financial professionals – get stronger the more firms come. This is because such clustering leads to economies of scale and scope and positive spillovers which further entrench the UK’s advantages. The agglomeration effects the UK enjoys as a financial centre are well established and underpin its international competitiveness.