London's Lobbyists Prepare to Return Fire

[FarCenter]

By Carsten Volkery and Michael Kröger

Hedge fund regulations, a tax on financial markets, a ban on naked short selling. The EU's bid to rein in the speculators has the financial industry up in arms. Lobbyists are already preparing to systematically attack the new proposals.

A day after the European Union outlined proposals to increase regulation of the financial markets, London's financial professionals are preparing a counter-attack. Some greeted the proposed regulations with contempt, others conjured up horror scenarios to campaign against the planned regulations.

"We are very disappointed by the proposals from Brussels," says Andrew Shrimpton, a partner at the leading London hedge fund consultancy Kinetic Partners. If the rules were really to be implemented then the sector would shrink massively, he says.

He was reacting to the announcement of several pieces of bad news for the financial industry this week. On Tuesday the German banking regulators BaFin announced that it was banning naked short-selling on government bonds issued by EU countries and naked credit default swaps. Chancellor Angela Merkel's ruling center-right government in Berlin said that it wanted to see a Europe-wide tax on financial markets introduced. And EU finance ministers, along with the Economic and Financial Committee of the European Parliament, voted for tougher regulation of hedge funds and private equity companies, despite objections from the British government.

The planned limits on hedge funds have provoked particular criticism in London, Europe's financial mecca. The industry there is particularly aggrieved as 80 percent of European hedge funds are based in Great Britain -- and many working in the City point out that Germany would not tolerate Brussels attempting to curb, for example, its automotive industry.

<SNIP>http://www.spiegel.de/international/business/0,1518,695847,00.html

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They really do have to chuck the UK out of the EU.

[daggahead]

1. Poor Babies.

:nopity:

[truebrit71]

2. Chuck the UK out of the EU? Why..because they don't want to be ruled by Brussels?

..I wouldn't either...and until it becomes the Uniteds States of Europe were everyone cedes their own identity to one central government, London has every right to tell the Germans and their euro sycophants to go and pound sand..

[FarCenter]

4. London is the chief cesspool of financial speculation and manipulation

Even worse than Wall Street.

And they will attempt to continue the Anglo-American system of financial exploitation in Europe until they are brought under control or until continental Europe throws them out and asserts their independence.

The UK should never have been admitted to the EU. Note that some of the countries with close ties to the EU, such as Greece and Portugal, are the worst offenders in the EuroZone.

[truebrit71]

5. "The UK should never been admitted to the EU"...bit late for that now isn't it?

Welcome to 30 years ago....

How does continental europe assert their independence? That statement is illogical on its face..."continental europe" is comprised of many different countries...how can they then 'collectively' assert 'independence'...if they did that it would mean dissolving the EU...

You obviously have some anti-Brit bias so I'll leave you and your bile alone I think...

[AndyA]

3. The world should just do away with the lobbying industry, and make all lobbyists

go to the Gulf to clean up the mess they helped to create.

Then, when they're done there they can perform public service to repay people for what they've cost them over the years. Increased cell phone fees, higher interest rates, and compromised government representation are just a few for starters.