Agenda item

Resolved : - That this Court wishes to convey to,

Alastair John Naisbitt King DL

their gratitude and appreciation for the distinguished manner in which he has served as Lord Mayor of the City of London during the past year. 

His Mayoral theme, ‘Growth Unleashed’, has focused on driving growth by celebrating the successes and diverse communities within the Square Mile, encouraging the adoption of technologies that provide London with a competitive advantage, and challenging industry to maximise opportunities through responsible risk-taking. 

Alastair has achieved particular success through his tireless work to transform the UK’s pension investment culture, championing a value-for-money approach that prioritises long-term returns for savers. Through the Mansion House Accord, an extra £50 billion of investment for UK businesses and major infrastructure projects is set to be unlocked, and his corresponding success through the Employer Pension Pledge, signed by the  Chancellor in July, commits over twenty of the UK’s largest employers to pledge to prioritise retirement outcomes for their workforce, rather than focusing solely on cost reduction, when selecting or reviewing pension providers.

Throughout the year of office, the Lord Mayor undertook an extensive programme of international visits, travelling to over twenty countries by November and maintaining enthusiasm and good humour throughout, including visits to Australia, India, China, North America, Japan, the Gulf, and South East Asia. Notable highlights include hosting visiting dignitaries and officials, such as the State Visit by the President of the French Republic in July—celebrating ties between the UK and France and encouraging stronger collaboration on financial services—and hosting the Amir of Qatar at Mansion House during his State Visit.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, given his Scottish heritage, Alastair also made promoting investment into Scotland a personal priority, including through his co-hosting of Scotland’s Global Investment Summit with Scottish Financial Enterprise in October, supported by both the UK and Scottish Governments.

And The Lord Mayor also demonstrated strong support for the Defence sector and Armed Forces by leading a series of breakfast roundtables on funding the UK defence supply chain with financial professional services firms.

In thanking Alastair, his colleagues on this Court also wish to express their gratitude to Florence, the Lady Mayoress, for her enthusiastic support throughout the year, particularly through her championing of the Armed Forces Covenant. We also record our thanks to Corinne Lee, who has often acted as Representative Lady Mayoress during the year. 

In taking their leave of Alastair, their 696^th Lord Mayor, Members unite in thanking Alastair for all that has been accomplished in his year and send best wishes to him and to Florence for their future good health and happiness.