London will stay prosperous post-Brexit

THE Government’s Defence Infrastructure Organisation is, as we report today, preparing legislation to allow for the sale of Hyde Park Barracks — a sale that could raise half a billion pounds and generate an extraordinary boost to property prices at this rarefied part of the market. The proposed sale of the flats has not pleased some local residents, and it is not clear where the Household Cavalry would go from its present home in Hyde Park, but the sale would undoubtedly revitalise the central London luxury residential market. For most Londoners this is a different world from the one they inhabit, in which homes are ever less affordable, but undeniably the sale — which would require legislation — would prove that London remains the most attractive place in the world in which to live and that the property market remains dynamic.

Another indicator that, post-Brexit, London will remain prosperous and outward-looking is in our interview today with Jes Staley, the chief executive of Barclays, who declares that London will be one of two great global financial centres, together with New York. “I don’t believe that the financial centre of Europe will leave the City of London. The bulk of what we do will continue to occur in London.” And when it comes to the Brexit negotiations the Government must do what it takes to retain the City’s competitive edge. Post-Brexit, London must be more open to the world than ever before, its horizons global rather than just European. Being hospitable to talent from every quarter will mean that London retains its position as the most dynamic capital in the world.