The Prime Minister began by welcoming new members of the 2024
Business Council and said he was determined to continue his work
to make the UK the best place to start, grow, and invest in
businesses.
He explained how – in the face of geopolitical headwinds – the
economy has turned a corner and is moving in the right direction.
He noted that inflation has more than halved from 11.1% to 4%,
mortgage rates are coming down, and the economy is forecast to
grow.
The new Council, with members including FTSE and SME companies
from across the UK, discussed the impact of the current
macroeconomic climate on business operations. Members noted the
impact of global factors on business – such as the war in Ukraine
and recent attacks in the Red Sea – but pointed to positive
indicators, such as customers feeling the benefit of tax cuts on
their expendable income, and optimism about longer term growth.
The discussion went on to explore how the UK Government can best
support growth and innovation across the economy, discussing the
success of full expensing – which is the biggest business tax cut
in modern British history. Members were positive about the UK’s
strong consumer confidence, which is at a 2-year high. The
Council discussed how cuts to National Insurance will boost
spending power, which is likely to improve confidence
further.
The Prime Minister closed the meeting by thanking attendees for
their time and encouraged them to feed in their views and ideas
so the Government can continue supporting businesses to invest
and grow, boosting the economy and delivering opportunities
across the UK for British people.
Notes to editors:
- Since the beginning of 2023, the Government has been working
on five priorities. Three of them are economic: to halve
inflation, grow the economy and reduce debt. A year later, the
plan is working, and economy has turned a corner. Inflation has
been more than halved, the economy has done better than predicted
and outperformed European neighbours like Germany, and debt is on
track to fall as a share of the economy.
- Here is a list of members of the 2024 Business Council:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/2024-business-council-launched
