Competing for talent: global mobility, immigration and the City of London's labour market

The City of London's competitiveness is founded on its global talent pool and ability to attract and retain workers of all nationalities. Drawing on ONS Long-Term International Migration data and fieldwork-based studies of banking, professional services and business education, the argument of this paper is 2-fold: that the City's competitiveness is significantly dependent on the functioning of its global labour market, of which a key factor is the immigration of European Economic Area (EEA) and non-EEA talent, and that a central determinant of the City's position as a leading international financial centre based around a highly competitive global labour pool will be UK immigration policy in the wake of the financial crisis of 2007-2008 and ensuing recession.