The report said Wheatley, head of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), made the call after MPs on the Parliamentary Inquiry into Banking Standards complained the UK had a poor record on convictions when compared to other states.

Wheatley said the US was ahead of the UK in this field as it could use phone taps and had higher sentencing powers, reported The Independent.

He told MPs: “Very often because of higher tariffs somebody would turn state’s witness. If the tariff was higher we would have more people coming forward to co- operate with us. That level of co-operation would secure more convictions.

“It [insider trading] is a difficult crime to prosecute, but we have sent 20 people to jail and we are taking on complex and difficult cases.”