The General Purposes Committee of Aldermen met on 15 July 2025 to elect a chair and deputy chair, and to discuss support for UK-based financial and professional services. The committee was also scheduled to discuss the future disposal strategy for 1 Queen Victoria Street (Magistrates' Court) and the Mayor's & City Court, Guildhall.

Election of Chair and Deputy Chair

The committee was scheduled to elect a chair and deputy chair for the year. Alderman Sir William Russell was nominated for chair and Alderman Sir Charles Bowman was nominated for deputy chair.

Support for UK-Based Financial and Professional Service - Innovation and Growth Quarterly Report

The committee was scheduled to receive a report from Damian Nussbaum, Executive Director for Innovation and Growth, regarding support for UK-based Financial and Professional Services (FPS). The report provided an update on key pieces of work undertaken between April 2025 and June 2025 by the Innovation and Growth (IG) Department, in collaboration with Corporate Affairs, Media, the Remembrancer's Office, Office of the Policy Chairman and Mansion House.

The report noted that the City of London Corporation (CoLC), through IG, works to strengthen the UK's FPS, creating jobs and growth across the UK. Programmes in this area support the Corporate Plan 2024-29 objective to deliver Dynamic Economic Growth, the recommendations in the Corporation's Vision for Economic Growth Report and are aligned to the Corporation's Competitiveness Strategy 2021-25.

The report highlighted a range of activities undertaken by the CoLC between April and June 2025, across key areas of its 2025/2026 business plan, which support the objectives to:

• Ensure the UK is a global gateway for FPS business.
• Position the UK as a one-stop shop and the go-to partner for countries and companies looking for capital and expertise to help them meet their sustainability goals.
• Ensure the UK FPS and financial system is recognised as globally leading in technology.

Some specific activities mentioned in the report included:

• The publication of the Annual Review of the City of London's work in support of financial and professional services in April.
• The Lord Mayor hosting Nirmala Sitharaman, the Indian Finance Minister, at Mansion House for a bilateral meeting.
• The Policy Chairman leading a delegation to Zurich to discuss the implementation of the Berne Financial Services Agreement¹.
• The launch of the London RMB Business Report, jointly produced by the City Corporation and the People's Bank of China Representative Office for Europe.
• The release of the annual analysis of financial and professional services foreign direct investment into the UK, which showed that the UK continues to be a leader in financial and professional services Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), coming top in Europe and third in the world.
• The Policy Chairman visiting Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Hong Kong to strengthen UK-China financial ties.
• The Lord Mayor visiting Scandinavia to deepen UK - Nordic collaboration in financial and professional services.
• Holding the fourth iteration of the Net Zero Delivery Summit in partnership with the IEA and Sustainable Markets Initiative.
• The City of London publishing a whitepaper for policymakers on the role of impact venture capital and private equity in delivering government missions.
• The Technology and Innovation Team beginning a project aiming to help AI startups and scaleups better prepare their business to procure with financial services.
• The International Regulatory Strategy Group (IRSG), a joint venture between TheCityUK and the Corporation, submitting a response raising concerns around broad definitions, regulatory overlap, and scope clarity in HM Treasury's draft Statutory Instrument bringing a wide range of cryptoasset activities within the Financial Conduct Authority's (FCA) remit.

The report also provided updates on the activities of the CoLC's overseas offices in Brussels, India, China, and the US.

Decisions Taken Under Delegated Authority or Urgency Powers

The committee was scheduled to consider a report from the Town Clerk regarding decisions taken under urgency procedures between committee meetings. The report detailed a decision made under Court of Aldermen's Standing Order No. 46 regarding an aldermanic appointment to the Policy & Resources Committee.

In March 2025, the General Purposes Committee of Aldermen agreed that the aldermanic spaces on the Policy & Resources Committee for 2025/26 should be allocated to Alderman Tim Hailes, Alderman Vincent Keaveny, Alderwoman Dame Susan Langley (as Senior Alderman Below The Chair (SABTAC)), and Alderman Sir William Russell. However, Alderwoman Dame Susan Langley's time commitments as SABTAC meant that she was likely to be prohibited from regular attendance. To ensure adequate representation, it was proposed that Alderman Bronek Masojada fill this fourth place instead.

As the General Purposes Committee of Aldermen would not convene again until 15 July 2025, and the Policy & Resources Committee was due to meet in early July, a decision to alter the aldermanic membership was requested under urgency. The Chairman of the General Purposes Committee of Aldermen authorised the appointment of Alderman Bronek Masojada to the Policy & Resources Committee in place of Alderwoman Dame Susan Langley for the remainder of the 2025/26 civic year.

Other Matters

The agenda also included the following items:

• Approval of the minutes of the last meeting of the General Purposes Committee of Aldermen held on 13 May 2025.
• Questions on matters relating to the work of the committee.
• Any other business that the chairman considers urgent.
• Exclusion of the public for the non-public part of the meeting.
• Non-Public Minutes
• Illumination of Mansion House Protocol
• FPS Dinner - Forward Look
• 1 Queen Victoria Street (Magistrates' Court) & Mayor's & City Court, Guildhall - Future Disposal Strategy
• Revenue Outturn 2024/25
• Decisions Taken Under Delegated Authority or Urgency Powers
• Strategy Group Updates
• Key Committee Issues
• Non-Public Questions on Matters Relating to the Work of the Committee
• Any Other Business That The Chairman Considers Urgent And Which The Committee Agrees Should Be Considered Whilst The Public Are Excluded