Overview
- In a phone call in mid‑August, Jamie Dimon warned Chancellor John Healey that a tougher tax stance on banks risks driving employment and capital away from Britain.
- Dimon repeated that JPMorgan’s planned £3 billion Canary Wharf headquarters could be reconsidered if the UK’s tax environment turns hostile to the bank.
- UK banks currently pay a 3% corporation tax surcharge on profits above a threshold, a levy cut from 8% in April 2023 that is now the focus of proposals to raise revenues.
- Campaigners including the Trades Union Congress are urging a higher windfall levy — proposals have pushed for rates nearer 8% to fund public spending — increasing political pressure on the Chancellor.
- Healey has requested meetings with senior bank executives before his 28 October Budget, a process that will shape whether ministers opt for higher bank taxes, spending cuts, or other revenue measures and could affect jobs, investment and London’s role as a finance centre.