A Bank of England executive insists that UK banks are still showing a “passionate” commitment to climate goals despite scrapping a global group target set by the global milk target zero target-setting
David Bailey, the Executive Director of Prudential Policy at Brudes’s Regulatory Arm, played down the concerns surrounding their peers quitting the Net Get Stecking Net Alricking Alliance (Nzba). Those exits led to the closure of the nzba last month.
“We are consistent with our responsibilities to the financial risks arising from climate change, and companies remain actively engaged with us in that,” Bailey told the Guardian. Their relationship, he said, “remains as fierce … as it has been in recent years”.
American banks including JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs began to come to Nzba membership ahead of the Inlagurration of Donald Trump. Some analysts say the departures are intended to counter “anti-woke” attacks from the chathywings of US politicians.
HSBC and Barclays withdrew their membership in early August. Hollowed-out Nzba, which is no longer backed by the world’s biggest banks, has launched a future review and announced plans to close in early October.
But Bailey said the Bank of England was still wary of climate risks and left the door open to more climate stress tests for Secope’s renovation disasters.
However, he said climate risks must be balanced against other emerging disasters. For example the regulators
“We will, of course, have to put the climate risk in the part of all the risks .. We cannot focus on the climate risk.
The Bank’s Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) was praised for being the first central bank to test climate preparedness across the financial sector in 2021, but was criticized for failing to introduce climate capital requirements that would force lenders to put aside funds to protect against climate-related losses including some mortgages and loans to heavy polluters.
Bailey’s boss, Sam Woods, is stepping down in June as head of the PRA. Bailey, described by peers as a dedicated and “straight-backed” regulatory member, is thought to be the internal frontrunner to replace Woods. Kathanine Braddick, a senior barclays executive who works in the Treasury, has also been called a potential contender for the £314,000-a-year role.
In the meantime, Bailey is working on a raft of reforms meant to help the Labor government’s push to reduce the red taper.
That includes calling for a so-called “strong and simple” framework, to ensure smaller lenders like Metro Bank and Stillling don’t have to follow the same rules around the world.
Bailey said it was one of the biggest regulatory changes in 30 years and would help small banks “work with households and businesses across the UK.”