Huw Evans, Director General of the Association of British Insurers (ABI), has dedicated his speech at the association’s annual dinner to criticising the conduct of the British Government in recent negotiations concerning the UK’s departure from the European Union (EU), and has stressed the insurance industry’s need for a straightforward transitional agreement.
He suggested that after finally reaching an encouraging preliminary agreement before Christmas, the Government had since “gone backwards” by over-complicating the deal with extra demands relating to restrictions on EU citizens during the transitional period.
“The time for hard bargaining is surely over the terms of the final deal, not the interim period,” argued Evans, “especially when an early agreement is needed to help businesses and regulators manage the huge changes involved and is so important for clarity with customers on issues such as the EHIC and travel insurance and Motor and fleet insurance and green cards.”
Evans noted that this preliminary agreement had already taken 15 months of negotiations to reach, and with just over a year to go until the transitional deadline of March 2019, the UK’s insurance industry is left in a position of damaging uncertainty.
In the face of such anxiety, Evans’ speech urged the Government and MPs to “please, get on with it”, and contended that: “A transitional agreement only reached at the 11th hour as part of horse trading over the final agreement will be of no value to businesses that have had to implement contingency plans by then instead. We need a straightforward transitional and we need it now.”
However, Evans also maintained that the task of retaining the UK’s position as a world-leading centre of insurance would extend beyond the responsibilities of politicians, and stressed that: “This is a job for us all; market participants, regulators, politicians and partners.”
He asserted that the UK’s privileged position could only be maintained if insurers focused on maximising growth, embracing innovation, and attracting the best talent and highest quality capital.
“The position we enjoy today is because previous generations seized opportunities and refused to be bound by old certainties,” said Evans. “All of us need to find the courage to do the same and have a substantive debate about the choices ahead.”
He concluded his speech with a warning that the UK’s “illustrious past does not guarantee a bright future”, and asserted that the nation’s heritage should not stop the industry making radical changes to prepare for the future.
