Alistair Darling has warned the European Union against further imposing regulations on the UK’s financial services industry.

Darling warned the newly appointed French finance commissioner for internal affairs Michel Barnier, not to meddle with The City’s regulation after President Nicolas Sarkozy controversially stated, ‘The English are big losers in this affair’ and reiterated his belief that ‘Anglo-Saxon capitalism’ was to blame for the economic crisis.

Darling believes that by holding individual companies accountable to more than one authority will lead to a “recipe for confusion”. ‘National supervisors, such as the FSA, must remain responsible for supervising individual companies. Making companies directly accountable to more than one authority is a recipe for confusion,’ said Darling, in an article in the Times today.

Furthermore, Darling brought attention to the City as the only real global financial centre next to New York. ‘No other centre in Europe offers the same range of services…it is in Europe’s interest that they prosper alongside their close European partners’ Darling continued.

Barnier’s appointment has been seen as a victory for France over the UK. After Sarkozy’s remarks to French newspaper Le Monde, Barnier has tried to ease concerns by stating the following on a radio station, ‘I know the importance of the City…It’s not my job to be nice or nasty.’

Gordon Brown however has been criticised for not vying against Barnier’s appointment by David Buik of BGC Partners. These criticisms were followed by a series of others, suggesting clumsy horse-trading tactics on Britain’s part during the selection of the new EU foreign minister, Baroness Ashton.

‘I don’t think the UK government has the slightest idea of the damage that will be caused to the infrastructure of the City … this is a death blow – make no mistake.’ Stated Buik.