POLITICS


Chris Hobson, Director of Policy at the Chamber


“Those who suggest that the solution to poor


procurement and questionable outsourcing decisions by Government is the wholesale nationalisation of entire swathes of the economy must also be challenged. “Facing down the superficially seductive


argument for nationalisation won’t be easy – but it’s vital to the future success of communities and prosperity all across the UK.” The Chamber's Chris Hobson said: “What Adam


said is absolutely true, if we don’t lay the right foundations today then whatever we build in the future will lack stability and sustainability. If we don’t get the basics right now we might as well hang a ‘closed’ sign at the border after Brexit. “The agreement over the Brexit transition


period and the rights of over four million EU citizens in the UK and 1.2 million UK citizens resident in the EU is something we welcomed, but it’s only a start. “The most recent survey of businesses in the


region tells us that we need better broadband connectivity and the eradication of mobile telephony ‘not-spots’, better roads connectivity, a reduction in the red tape burden, a full review of the broken business rates system and energy security. “Today, if you drive down the M1, the country’s


most important motorway, around East Midlands Airport, a major gateway to the UK, you see a road pitted with potholes and surface damage through mile after mile of roadworks. And things don’t get any better when you drive through our towns and cities. “Our railways are essentially partly-modernised


‘Those who seek to divide our business communities by pitting the small against the large or by demonising some sectors while championing others, must be challenged’


to cloud over the rudderlessness of recent years, a convenient excuse to plough attention and resources into a process of disconnection rather than to take the far harder step of reimagining Britain for the future and then marshalling all available brainpower, management capacity and financial resources into making it happen.” Adam highlighted the importance of a thriving


private sector, saying: “The wave of business investment we all want to see depends,


intrinsically, on the level of business confidence in the stability and stance of Governments. “Yet our business communities are worried


about the rhetorical assault on capitalism and wealth generation emanating from some quarters of Westminster. Those who seek to divide our business communities by pitting the small against the large or by demonising some sectors while championing others, must be challenged.


Victorian technology running diesel trains where most of Europe’s railways are electrified, quick, clean and quiet, and there are so many mobile and broadband ‘not-spots’ – areas where signals simply don’t get through – that you can’t rely on technology to tell people you’re running late because of the shabby infrastructure. “In recent years, the Government’s own data


shows that the East Midlands received only 60% of the nation’s average per capita spend on infrastructure. “We have called for this to be increased to


100% by 2020 so that as a region - the biggest contributor to the UK economy outside of London and the Southeast - we can do even better. We already do extremely well, but just think how much better we could do if Government were to support us instead of seemingly working against us.”


business network April 2018 35


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