MPs will debate the Financial Services and Markets Bill at second reading in the House of Commons today, Tuesday 10 November, in the main business of the day.

The debate is scheduled to run until 10pm, after oral questions to the Secretary of State for Justice and a Ten Minute Rule motion from Josh Babarinde MP on English ethnic identity in census particulars. The day closes with an adjournment debate from Alice Macdonald MP on access to dental care in the East of England.

Second reading is the first chance for MPs to debate the main principles of a bill. If the Commons agrees to the bill at second reading, it will move to committee stage, where MPs will examine it line by line. The programme motion sets out that proceedings in the Public Bill Committee should be brought to a conclusion by Tuesday 15 December 2026.

What the bill would do

The bill would introduce a broad package of reforms to UK financial services regulation, as part of the government's wider financial services reform agenda. It was announced in the King's Speech on 13 May 2026 as the Enhancing Financial Services Bill, introduced in the House of Lords on 19 May, and had its second reading there on 8 June. It completed its Lords stages on 15 September and was introduced in the House of Commons the same day.

Opening the Lords second reading, ministers said the bill would modernise how the sector is regulated, enable it to grow and lend more to businesses, and make consumer protections fit for the digital age. The financial services sector is one of the UK's largest: ministers told peers it makes up around 20 per cent of UK exports and accounted for 8 per cent of UK gross value added in 2025, totalling £224 billion.

One of its central measures, in clause 1 and schedule 1, would repeal large parts of the remaining provisions of the Consumer Credit Act 1974, so that many of them can be recast into the rulebook of the Financial Conduct Authority, the FCA. The bill would extend and apply to England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

What happens next

Peers gave the bill an unopposed second reading in June, and it passed its Lords committee stages unamended, although 178 amendments were tabled and debated. The Commons debate today will test whether MPs back its principles and what changes, if any, they want to see at committee stage.

Industry groups have broadly welcomed the direction of the reforms, including faster authorisation timeframes, reform of the Financial Ombudsman Service, and changes to the Senior Managers and Certification Regime. They have also pressed for targeted improvements, including on claims management regulation in Northern Ireland and on regulator accountability.

The bill is expected to complete its passage before the end of the year if parliamentary time allows, with most of its provisions then coming into force on dates set by Treasury regulations.