agenda
more proactively”
“we have to all think
So there is an obvious need to make foreign sources of investment capital aware of the business opportunities available in UK infrastructure.”
GLOBAL HUB But how do we make the UK special and how do Green and the Government make these shores more attractive than rivals in Europe and around the world? “There are some important competitor economies around,” says Green. “But we have some advantages to build on, both as a destination for investors, and also for exporters. If you think fi rst of all about investment, this country is in so many ways the crossroads of the world. “This is the country of the English
language, which is increasingly the world’s business language. It is home to more foreign companies than the whole of the rest of Europe put together, and boasts a long, long history over decades and even centuries of being very open to inward and outward investment. “The UK has also been the most
consistently open country in the world to the trends of globalisation, the great story of our time. So, attitudinally, culturally and geographically, this is a country which is very hospitable to inward investment.” All this talk of big business is, believes
Green, ignoring another hugely important sector that could have an even
more important role in the recovery over the next few years. He says: “I’ll tell you where I think the
real leverage lies in years to come – small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). I don’t think it’s any great surprise that when you look around the UK you can fi nd leading-edge entrepreneurial talent. “Interesting Government research
shows that SMEs that get involved in international markets are likely to be more innovative and effi cient. That’s a very signifi cant fi nding because it means that as we encourage and help SMEs to get into international markets not only are we making progress in reducing the country’s trade defi cit but we are also strengthening the backbone of the whole economy.”
FINANCIAL SUPPORT In February, Green was involved in launching the Government’s trade White Paper, which he believes will result in a great deal of encouragement for those all important SMEs. “The components of the White Paper that are very relevant to SMEs are what we announced about new products for fi nancial credit support,” he says. “For example, the BIS scheme, which is modelled on the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme, is being extended to exporters. These
are loans of up to £1m for companies with a turnover below £25m. There are also new products for short-term credit insurance, expanding it away from its traditional focus on capital goods to a broader range of products.” With such incentives in place, should
every SME in the UK be exporting its products, skills or services? “Clearly there are many SMEs that don’t export who could,” says Green. “So there is a real competitive incentive for a well-run business to look at the opportunities. Indeed, there is a national imperative that we do better on the trade front than we have done.“Frankly, since the 1960s this country has been dogged by a trade defi cit position, which has proved a drag on growth. We need to reverse this and help the trade sector to be a contributor to growth. And that means we have to all think more proactively about where the opportunities are. “It’s inappropriate and unrealistic to say
that every single SME must get out there and export. However, what would be wrong is to say that exporting is only for larger, advanced high-tech manufacturing companies. I have seen remarkable examples of SMEs, in every part of the UK and from all sectors of industry, that are engaged in international markets. Some of them are new, while others have been around for 100 years.” >
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