U.S. congressman decries GE Money's move to UK

By Jason Szep

BOSTON, Feb 8 (Reuters) - A New York congressman on Friday decried General Electric Co's (GE.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) plan to move its core consumer financial arm's headquarters to London from Connecticut, calling it a "call to action" for policymakers.

U.S. Rep. Vito Fossella, a Republican, said the decision by GE Money reflected a broader trend by U.S. companies to increasingly turn to London and other foreign markets to do business at the expense of the United States.

"GE's announcement should serve as a call to action for U.S. policymakers to improve the regulatory and legal environment here to ensure the United States maintains its position as the world's financial center," he said.

"It should raise concern when a company of its stature moves its headquarters -- and many high-paying jobs -- to another country," he said in a statement.

Fairfield, Connecticut-based GE, the second-largest U.S. company by market capitalization, said on Thursday that new GE Money President and Chief Executive William Cary will be based in London.

This means that two of GE's six divisions -- Money and Healthcare -- will now be headquartered in Britain, representing about a quarter of the $173 billion annual turnover at one of America's best-known brands.

But Bob Rendie, a GE Money spokesman, said the number of jobs moving to Britain is relatively small -- less than 25 of the division's 170 jobs in Connecticut.

State officials in Connecticut had no immediate comment.