As chancellor from 1997-2007, Gordon Brown's approach was to shear the sheep, not kill them. Leftwing demands to increase the top rate of income tax and abolish tax concessions for foreign non-domiciled residents were ignored and capital gains tax was cut. The government went out of its way to help the City. The Financial Services Authority was encouraged to foster innovation and preserve London's competitive position through light-touch regulation, and foreign banks and bankers flocked to London. Politicians praised the City as a beacon for the knowledge economy. Senior financiers applauded the government's actions and were welcomed into Westminster and Whitehall.
在1997年至2007年擔任英國財政大臣期間，高登•布朗(Gordon Brown)採取的方式是剪羊毛，而不是宰羊。對於左翼有關提高所得稅最高稅率以及廢除非英國定居的外國居民稅收減免政策的要求，布朗置之不理，同時降低了資本利得稅。英國政府不辭辛苦地幫助金融城，鼓勵英國金融服務管理局(FSA)通過實施溫和的監管，促進創新並保持倫敦的競爭地位。因此，外國銀行和銀行家紛紛來到倫敦。政治家將金融城譽爲知識經濟的燈塔。高級金融家歡迎政府的舉措，他們在西敏（Westminster，英國議會所在地)和白廳（Whitehall，英國政府所在地）都受到歡迎。