LSE chief urges tax incentives to attract investors to UK shares

Dame Julia Hoggett, the boss of the London Stock Exchange, has urged the government to make UK shares more attractive to investors, warning that large companies will otherwise keep looking overseas for growth. In an interview with the BBC’s Big Boss podcast, she called for “structural incentives” to encourage investment in British businesses. [1]

Hoggett wants the government to scrap the 0.5% tax on purchases of UK shares and supports tax credits for people investing domestically. She also argued that often-exaggerated negativity about the UK market had contributed to companies leaving London in the past. “We need to stop throwing shade at ourselves as a nation,” she said. [1]

The concern comes amid a sharp difference in the number of new listings. According to the BBC, London had 23 initial public offerings in 2025, raising £2.1bn, while the US had 354, raising $44bn. US capital markets are much larger. The BBC cites Just Eat, Tui and Flutter among companies that have delisted or moved away from London in recent years; it does not attribute their decisions to a single cause. [1]