![\"Ed](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/edmilibandpic.jpeg\")
\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\tWednesday 24 June 2026 3:15 pm
\n\t\t\t\t\t\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0Updated:\u00a0<\/p>\n
\t\t\tWednesday 24 June 2026 4:13 pm\n\t<\/p>\n
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City banks are fretting over the prospect of Ed Miliband as Chancellor<\/a> as Andy Burnham mulls who he will give the keys to Number 11.<\/p>\n The banking industry<\/a> is bracing for a shake-up at the Treasury and fears it could be hit with a fresh raft of taxes under a new Chancellor while key deregulatory efforts are sidelined.<\/p>\n Ed Miliband \u2013 who is seen as a front-runner along with former health secretary Wes Streeting<\/a> \u2013 has already spooked some in the industry due to his approach to the oil and gas sector as energy secretary.<\/p>\n \u201cEd Miliband would be a disaster\u2026 I just don\u2019t think he believes in a deregulated system,\u201d one senior UK banking source told City AM.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s suspicious of bankers who he thinks can exploit customers\u201d.<\/p>\n The c-suite banker instead would prefer \u201cWes Streeting or Jonathan Reynolds\u201d, because the pair show an \u201cunderstanding [of] the free market\u201d..<\/p>\n Another industry source said: \u201cI\u2019m not sure if it will be Ed anymore but it would be the biggest concern\u201d.<\/p>\n The boss of investment bank Cavendish told City AM that markets would react \u201cin a worse way\u201d for Miliband than if Streeting is nominated for the post. Julian Morse said the energy secretary had the \u201cwrong angles\u201d and markets would \u201ccome off a bit if he became Chancellor<\/a>\u201c.<\/p>\n Burnham is expected to give a speech in the City<\/a> in the coming weeks in a bid to shore up his economic credibility and bring stability to markets. He is expected to promise to bring down the national debt and the cost of borrowing as he sets his growth vision within the current fiscal rules, according to The Times.<\/p>\n Could Miliband pull the plug on the deregulation agenda?<\/p>\n Over the weekend, Miliband\u2019s chances at securing the spot in Number 11 appeared to have dwindled after an onslaught of industry alerts, including from the boss of the Unite union, who warned the current energy secretary would be a \u201cnoose around the neck<\/a>\u201d of job creation.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\tRead more<\/p>\n \t\t\tBurnham to lay out economic plan, but markets fear Miliband as Chancellor<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cThe weakening of Miliband\u2019s prospects is undoubtedly welcome from a banking sector standpoint,\u201d John Cronin, banking analyst at Seapoint Insights, said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Industry concerns centre on fears that it will be viewed as ripe for a tax raid, and that planned reforms<\/a> \u2013 including ring-fencing and updates to the banks\u2019 ombudsman \u2013 will be abandoned.<\/p>\n Reeves avoided a cash grab on Britain\u2019s banks in back-to-back tax-raising Budgets despite lobbying calls from across the political benches, including former deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner.<\/p>\n The Chancellor unveiled her Financial Services Growth & Competitiveness Strategy last year but has faced criticism for failing to deliver the economic boost as hoped.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cI think these were just political gestures to tidy things up,\u201d a banking source said, adding they don\u2019t expect momentum to pick up if Miliband was to take the post.<\/p>\n Should Burnham run uncontested for the Labour leadership, he could take the helm mid-July where he would deliver his hotly-anticipated shake-up to the Cabinet.<\/p>\n A coronation for the former mayor of Manchester would come as a row heats up over the Financial Services and Markets Bill, unveiled with significant fanfare in the King\u2019s Speech in a bid to bolster the sector.<\/p>\n The legislation is in the committee stage of the House of Lords, but peers have hit out at the Treasury for \u201celiminating\u201d its oversight of financial watchdogs in a move that threatens<\/a> to clog up the trajectory of the bill before Starmer and Reeves are expected to leave office.<\/p>\n \u201cA period of uncertainty for the banking system lies ahead,\u201d Cronin said.<\/p>\n Miliband has not publicly commented on a Cabinet position. His parliamentary office did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\tRead more<\/p>\n