The Bank of England has issued a warning to the EU (HERE) about a lack of action (there's a novelty) on measures to avoid disruption to the European financial system after Brexit. I really don't understand all these complicated financial instruments at all so can't comment on what the European Central Bank should or shouldn't be doing. But I think the warning comes at least in part from the idea that London is in an unassailable position as the leading European financial centre. In the long term, this might look like hubris.
I am old enough to remember when Boeing seemed to have an unassailable position as the world's leading manufacturer of civil aircraft. The UK company De Havilland designed and built the Comet, the first jet powered passenger airliner but Boeing, with the 707 was the first to produce a commercially successful one. The 707 first flew in 1957 and quickly became dominant while the comet had disastrous design issues (sound familiar?). European manufacturers, especially British ones, were far too small to compete and would have all disappeared if not in 1967 the EEC had not began to form Airbus as a counterweight to Boeing.
The EU could not contemplate being reliant on a third country for it's airliners and have pumped a lot of taxpayer money into Airbus over the years. The Common Agricultural Policy was intended to make Europe self sufficient in food.
Those Brexiteers who think the EU will, in the long term, accept London as it's banker will be wise to consider the Airbus story as a warning from history.
