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Britain is ‘open for business’ say CEOs

CEOs are calling the government to show the world that Britain is ‘open for business’ to encourage foreign investors to kick start the economy.

At the CEO summit last week, many expressed the view that a reversal of the regulatory culture dominating the UK’s economic landscape is now needed, alongside easing of taxes to encourage entrepreneurs to base their businesses in the UK.

According to Bob Diamond, CEO of Barclays, many SME’s were making conscious decisions to adopt defensive positions by not hiring or spending in the current uncertain climate. He was also keen to stress that if growth is to occur, then this trend needs to be reversed quickly.

Energy was also high up on the agenda, and Sam Laidlaw, CEO of Centrica, was critical of the country’s energy policy, which he branded unclear and a major influencing factor in the lack of investment in the energy sector in the UK.

Intrusive and creeping legislation was also up for debate, due to the ever-changing rules which many businesses are forced to navigate.

Many businesses are preparing to implement the Agency Workers Directive later this year, a piece of legislation so complicated that even Government sponsored bodies are admitting that only case law will be able to establish he meanings of certain paragraphs and descriptions.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .