Insurers have stressed the uncertainty created by the UK government’s defeat on its proposed Brexit deal - and called for a way forward to avoid a no-deal exit.
UK Prime Minister Theresa May suffered the worst parliamentary defeat of a government in history last night as MPs rejected her proposed Brexit deal by 432 votes to 202, a majority of 230.
Immediately after the defeat, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn called for a no-confidence vote in May’s government to trigger a general election. This vote takes place today.
Reacting to the government’s defeat on the Brexit deal, Huw Evans, director general of the Association of British Insurers, called for a “way forward urgently that avoids no-deal”.
Evans said: “This is uncharted territory and we face a period of unprecedented uncertainty. It is critical that the government, parliament and the EU work together to avoid an outcome that would be bad for our economies and bad for our customers.”
Hiscox Insurance chief executive Bronek Masojada was quoted on BBC Business as saying: “It's clear to us what politicians do not want but there's almost no clarity whatsoever about what the politicians do want. Markets just want to know what the end result is. The end is not clear and let alone the path to that.”
Jennette Newman, a partner at law firm Clyde & Co and president of the London Forum of Insurance Lawyers, said the London insurance community has in many ways led the way in being prepared for all Brexit eventualities.
Newman said even if the proposed Brexit deal had passed, the UK’s future long-term relationship with the EU remains unclear and will be subject to protracted negotiations.
She added the London market must redouble its modernisation efforts to ensure it's as efficient an insurance centre as possible and continue to place itself at the heart of the innovation taking place in the sector.