City of London Corporation Defends Finances After FT Funding Story

The City of London Corporation published a formal statement on 18 October 2026 in response to a Financial Times story examining the funding model and financial position of the Corporation, the unique local authority that governs the Square Mile. In the statement the Corporation stressed that the financial and professional services sector concentrated within the Square Mile generates 12 per cent of all UK tax receipts, providing revenue that funds public services across the whole country — positioning any scrutiny of the Corporation's finances within a broader argument about the sector's national importance. On its own budget position, the Corporation confirmed that elected Members are working through extensive financial modelling as part of the budget-setting process, with final recommendations on council tax levels and a five-year financial plan due to be presented to the Court of Common Council in March 2027. The statement also confirmed that the high-profile Barbican Renewal programme — the most significant works to the grade-II listed arts centre since it opened in 1982 — is already under way, backed by £191 million in Corporation funding as part of a total £231 million Phase 1 cost. Major on-site construction is scheduled for 2027, intensifying through 2028–29. The Barbican attracts more than one million visitors per year and was described in the statement as a centrepiece of the Corporation's cultural and civic ambitions.