Harriett Baldwin has labelled HSBC’s landmark decision to move its retail banking operation from London to Birmingham ‘a major boost to jobs and growth in the Midlands’.
The Economic Secretary will be the first government minister to visit the construction site of HSBC UK’s new 9.2 acre location – 2 Arena Central – and hailed the creation of up to 1,000 new financial services jobs in Birmingham and the significant boost to the Midland’s construction industry as a direct result of the move. 
The relocation is partly seen as a result of new government legislation coming into force in 2019 requiring banks to separate their investment arms from their retail and business banking operations to offer more protection to consumers.
The Midlands is already the UK’s 4th biggest financial services hub, coming in slightly behind the South East and the North West, and HSBC’s relocation will bring the Midlands even closer to gaining the 3rd position.
While in Birmingham the Economic Secretary will also attend a roundtable with representatives from HSBC and RBS, as well as Birmingham University, to discuss skills, recruitment and apprenticeships in the financial services sector. The government has committed to reaching 3 million apprenticeships in England by 2020 and the Economic Secretary believes the financial services sector is crucial to delivering this commitment.
The Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Harriett Baldwin said:
“HSBC’s decision to move 1,000 jobs from London to Birmingham is clear proof that the government’s plan to rebalance the economy is bearing fruit. The financial services industry in the Midlands is going from strength to strength and is great success story. It makes an important contribution to the local economy, employing around 210,000 people in total, a tenth of the entire financial services workforce.”
