CA Summit 24: Labour government urged to “move faster” on investment plan for UK businesses by Iain Anderson FRSA
The co-author of Labour’s ‘partnership plan’ for business has said that the government “needs to move faster” to communicate its investment plan.
Speaking at the ICAS CA Summit 24, Iain Anderson FRSA, co-founder and executive chairman of H/Advisors Cicero, admitted that businesses were “feeling the pain” of the autumn budget announcement and encouraged the government to do more to clearly communicate its plans for growth.
Iain Anderson said: “Is the budget hard for many businesses? Yes, no doubt about that. But those business leaders have been talking for so long now about having a prosperous and happy economy. I want the government to go faster. This is about projecting the investment plan for Britain. Is that coming through clearly? Businesses are saying, ‘we can see and hear the pain, but explain the gain’. That’s where the government has got to get to, and I’m keen they get there faster.”
Anderson also praised the government’s levels of engagement with businesses since the election. Anderson added: “This is a very consultative government. There has been an awful lot of engagement already. My challenge back to businesses is: are you framing things in way that is going to create policy change in the right way and gain traction?”
The topic of business trust in the new Labour government was also raised by Lord Mark Price, former Minister of State for Trade and Investment and ex-managing director of Waitrose, who commented during a panel discussion that the Labour government had “quickly eroded a lot of trust” of UK businesses.
Lord Mark Price said: “We’ve got into a position now through the budget where I think a lot of businesses feel that they’ve been let down, what they heard before is not what they’re getting. I think the changes in national insurance are going to be extraordinarily penal. They are going to result in job losses and higher prices.”
Anderson and Lord Price were speaking to CA Summit host, BBC’s chief economics correspondent, Dharshini David, during the annual two-day business and financial industry event held by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS), broadcast live from London on 19 and 20 November.
Commenting on the event, Bruce Cartwright, ICAS CEO, said: “Our goal for the CA Summit 24 was to bring together some of the UK’s brightest industry voices to tackle the key issues at the heart of business and finance in the UK today. The event certainly delivered, expertly chaired by Dharshini David, the panel discussions and fireside conversations proved enlightening and informative for those that attended. We’re already looking ahead to making next year’s CA Summit 25 even bigger and better.”
CA Summit 24 brought together influential voices from business, finance, and technology. Hosted by BBC’s chief economics correspondent Dharshini David, the two-day event explored topics ranging from artificial intelligence (AI) innovation to the UK’s economic future under the Labour government.
ICAS President Alison Cornwell CA and CEO Bruce Cartwright CA opened the summit with a discussion on innovation and ethical leadership. Cornwell shared insights into Vue International’s use of AI to streamline operations, while Cartwright reflected on ICAS’s enduring commitment to relevance and integrity over its 170-year history.
In addition to Iain Anderson and Lord Price the speaker line-up also included:
- Edwina Dunn OBE, pioneer behind Tesco’s Clubcard and leading data scientist
- Professor Andy Pardoe, AI expert
- Paolo Sbuttoni, technology and data lawyer
- Dr. Zoe Webster, AI and innovation consultant
- Lucy Price, Whitehall editor at the Financial Times
- Michael Martins, public policy and communications specialist
The first day’s lively panel discussion between Professor Andy Pardoe, Paolo Sbuttoni, Dr Zoe Webster, covered the future of AI in business, its ethical considerations, potential regulatory frameworks and how AI’s application differs for both smaller and larger organisations.
Day two tackled the UK’s post-election economic outlook, what the new Labour government means for the business prospects, and how might the result of the US election shape the global economic forecast.
