THE NEXT 50 YEARS | IN FOCUS
“isms” from the past that have been shown to lead to more harm than good. The CBI will have a major role in contributing to that debate. The third trend is energy and climate change.
It is almost certain that global temperatures will continue to rise, at least in the short term, as world leaders struggle to agree on measures to stem the rise in harmful greenhouse gas emissions. At the same time, the UK must ensure its long-term energy security while keeping bills manageable for households and businesses. The CBI will continue to use its voice to urge the UK government to push for a global deal in Paris in 2015 while being aware that it must work with consumers, who drive change, and businesses, which will make the investments and deliver the gains. The failure or success of these efforts will have a huge impact on what life looks like in 2065.
DIVERSITY AGENDA The fourth issue will be the continued challenge of ageing populations, both in the UK and in other developed economies. This will place an increasing burden on the government and taxpayers to fund long-term healthcare and retirement costs as people live for longer. At the same time, however, it will provide an incentive for those of pension age to adjust the way they plan their lives. One of the lessons of the recent recovery has been the sharp rise in the number of over-60s in the labour market. This trend will continue as workers deal with the decline of the defined-benefit pension scheme.
Challenges for the future include increased urbanisation (opposite) and an ageing population (right)
The fifth and related issue will be a growing
diversity within the world of work, in terms both of the make-up of the workforce and of the business models entrepreneurs adopt. While the UK has made progress to ensure that work and investment opportunities are open to all regardless of colour, gender or creed there is still a long way to go. The challenge of the next few decades will be to ensure that opportunities are open to all at every level of business and society and there are no glass ceilings. It should become less easy to define what a business or a business person looks like.
But the sixth and final shift is the hardest
to define. One of the lessons of the crisis is that businesses will need to become better at explaining to people what they do, what
their purpose is and what benefits they bring to the wider society. There has been a notable reaction against big business, whether they are major corporations such as energy companies or media organisations. Businesses will have to become better at engaging with and listening to their customers and to society in general. It is impossible to imagine in what format
and through what channel the CBI’s 2065 annual report will be published. But it will certainly include themes familiar to businesses of 100 years previously and these six more modern themes, as well as others that no one can even guess. But the core mission of the CBI will remain: to promote the long-run international competitiveness of British business.
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