LGBT Great Engages UK Financial Services Regulators
October 09, 2023
London, 9th October 2023. LGBT Great has announced that it will be providing a formal written submission to two discussion papers released by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA). LGBT Great will set out how the regulators need to be more explicit, nuanced and targeted in their inclusion of LGBTQ+ people in their new proposed regulatory frameworks.
The FCA and PRA published their D&I consultation papers on 25th September 2023, setting out their proposals to introduce long-awaited new regulatory frameworks focussing on DE&I across UK Financial Services firms. Both frameworks (FCA CP23/20 and PRA CP18/23) seek to establish a new baseline for FCA and PRA-regulated firms with regard to D&I strategy, targets, reporting and non-financial misconduct. LGBT Great supports the aim of the consultation papers to develop clearer transparency, accountability, and consistency across the industry.
This comes at a time when hate crimes against trans and non-binary people in the UK have increased 11% in a year and 186% in the last five years, according to new figures released by the ONS. These figures are also set against a backdrop of increasingly worrying anti-trans commentary being propagated by media outlets and, most worryingly, the UK Government. LGBT Great warmly welcomes regulatory intervention from the FCA and PRA here in the UK, which has the potential to introduce more robust mechanisms to protect LGBTQ+ people from non-financial misconduct. However, LGBT Great's position is that the consultation papers lack the clarity and specificity around LGBTQ+ DE&I that would be required to fully recognise and support LGBTQ+ employees and consumers. Consequently, LGBT Great has announced its own engagement with its Corporate Membership community to define its response to the consultation papers.
LGBT Great has announced that it will actively consult with Corporate Members and build a detailed written response to outline its LGBTQ+-specific requests and recommendations. LGBT Great shares the mission of the FCA and PRA to improve diversity and representation across the industry while putting in place explicit mechanisms to protect and empower underrepresented talent and consumers to thrive.
LGBT Great is calling upon its Membership firms, LGBTQ+ talent and other relevant LGBTQ+ specialist organisations to provide strategic input. LGBT Great will also ensure that a non-LGBTQ+ lens, meaning the voice and views of allies, is also applied to the response. LGBT Great will work to ensure that the marginalised voices of the LGBTQ+ community, notably LGBTQ+ women, and trans and non-binary people, are clearly represented in the response.
The Consultation will be led by Alex Hoare, LGBT Great’s Executive Director who commented, “Our vision is for every organisation to be truly LGBTQ+ inclusive and friendly, inside and out. However, this does not happen in a vacuum, as organisations must also commit to establishing a robust foundation for LGBTQ+ inclusion built on data, governance and clear organisational goals and objectives. With these discussion papers, the FCA and PRA set out a clear vision for a more data-led and accountable industry. I look forward to working with our Corporate Members and broader network to support the FCA and PRA in the coming months to ensure that LGBTQ+ elements are fully, sensitively, and realistically integrated into the Regulators’ proposed regulatory framework.”
To provide input into LGBT Great’s response, please sign up here.