A square mile of money

Abstract

The City of London comes up in every discussion about Britain’s money and also it is a strong influence even on the day-to-day money of Mr and Mrs Average. A decision made in the City may fix how much interest will be charged on a vacuum cleaner hire-purchased to a housewife in Burnley; a decision made in the City will echo in Stockport when a local bank manager turns down a request for a loan to extend a small factory; a decision in the City may prevent a grandmother in Lowestoft from sending a gift of money to her married daughter in Canada; a decision in the City may enable a private Welsh school to build a Science block; a decision in the City may throw 3,000 men out of work in Liverpool — or provide employment for 4,000 in Paisley. Nowadays, Westminster may make the political move that triggers off all those decisions, but it is the City that opens or shuts the country’s purses.