The UK’s financial watchdog has told banks it is sanguine about what model they use as they move business to the EU after Brexit, a stance in contrast to the approach from European regulators.

In a letter to chief executives across the City of London, Andrew Bailey, the head of the Financial Conduct Authority, said the regulator was “open to a broad range” of arrangements on how to book risk and profit, provided they were properly overseen

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Upmarket estate agency Savills has warned that the deadlocked Brexit negotiations made it hard to make predictions for the rest of the year, as it posted an 18% drop in half-year profits after sharp declines in commercial and residential deals.

Residential transactions fell 7% in London, and 10% outside the capital, in the six months to 30 June. However, the average value of London property sold by Savills rose 16% to £3.2m and was up 3% in the regions to £1.2m.

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Crisis-hit Northamptonshire county council has voted to push ahead with a radical cuts strategy to reduce services to a bare legal minimum, as it attempts to close a financial black hole which it says could grow to £180m within three years.

The strategy aims for “radical service reductions and efficiencies” across a range of areas, including children’s services and adult social care as it moves to a stripped back “core offer” to residents.