UK Sovereign

Boris Johnson, UK prime minister, announced on Tuesday night a 10 point plan for the environment, including phasing out petrol cars by 2030. But policy specialists are disappointed that the plan lacks financing commitments and especially that there is no announcement of a national investment bank.

Giving cheap loans with few restrictions to local authorities via the Public Works Loan Board is not a suitable replacement for central government funding. This must change, or London Borough of Croydon will only be the first council to fall into insolvency.

Will Sir Robert Stheeman become the Green Knight?

The UK’s announcement that it would begin issuing green Gilts next year is raising hopes that it will inspire more green bond issuance from UK borrowers. But market participants are eager to see how the UK handles setting up a green debt programme and its own green taxonomy. Lewis McLellan and Jon Hay report.

The UK will issue its first green Gilts next year, create its own Taxonomy of green activities and oblige large companies and investors to report as recommended by the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures by 2025, the chancellor of the exchequer Rishi Sunak said on Monday.

The Bank of England added £150bn to its quantitative easing programme at its monetary policy meeting on Thursday. The move will go a long way to soaking up the additional supply of Gilts.

The London Borough of Sutton hit the market on Monday for £100m, opting to print the deal via European Primary Placement Facility (eppf), a digital bond issuance platform based in Luxembourg.

A group of some of the UK's biggest asset managers, professional bodies and banks are supporting a proposal for an SRI-themed UK sovereign debt product to deliver environmental and social benefits as part of the country’s recovery from the pandemic.

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The new jobs support scheme unveiled on Thursday by Rishi Sunak, the UK chancellor of the exchequer, will add a minimal cost to the Treasury’s finances and be much cheaper than the coronavirus furlough package, according to analysts. All eyes now are on how the coronavirus pandemic plays out in the coming months, which could bring a much bigger cost.

The UK rode out renewed fears of the resurgent coronavirus pandemic on Tuesday, printing its second syndicated deal of the month with an order book over seven times covered.

The UK Debt Management Office has selected the banks which will lead its second syndicated transaction of the month, a tap of its 0.5% 2061 conventional Gilt.