A vast trust that would plough £1,000 pots of cash from birth into long-term UK investments is among the ideas that will be floated this week by City policymakers as part of a new economic growth plan.
Sky News understands that the City of London Corporation will raise the prospect of establishing a New Generation Trust as part of a wider review to be published on Thursday.
Under the proposal, every child could receive a £1,000 award that would be channelled into long-term UK investments.
The money would not be available to the beneficiary until adulthood, when it would be automatically invested in an individual savings account.
One source said the initiative could “help to build an investment culture in the UK, by introducing more citizens to the concept of investment and its use as part of a balanced long-term savings plan”.
The idea is intended to contribute to the debate about how to transform Britain’s investment culture to produce attractive long-term returns.
At the Mansion House dinner in July, the chancellor outlined a series of proposed reforms to plough tens of billions of pounds from defined benefit pension schemes into unlisted equities by 2030.
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Chris Hayward, the City of London Corporation policy chairman who orchestrated this week’s review, said: “Every element in the roadmap is about driving growth and creating jobs.
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“Central to that plan is ensuring everyone from boomers to babies has a stake in growth.
“A New Generation Trust could be an investment in our nation’s future.”
One key question relates to the potential funding of such an initiative, with this week’s report intended to act as a catalyst for discussions about possible combinations of public and private capital mechanisms.
The new report has been compiled after consultation with more than 300 stakeholder across financial and professional services including business, regulators and government.
