Business Secretary Targets Faster Growth Ambitions

Good morning, and thank you very much for that warm introduction, Alan, and my sincere thanks to the whole team here at Samsung for so generously hosting us, today.

It's actually quite emotional to be honest, it would have been someone like my grandfather who dug out that coal, sent it down here, and a few generations later I get to be on this stage doing this.

But Samsung is a company synonymous with the best in cutting-edge design and innovation; and much of it is on full display here within these four walls.

It is a fitting venue to discuss this government's ambition to go further and faster in our growth mission…ensuring that your investments that you outlined here in the UK pay dividends.

Three years ago, I gave my first speech as the then Shadow Business Secretary - and I promised we would be both a pro-business and a pro-worker party…

…A party rooted not just in the experience of working people, but which recognises, above all else, that you cannot rebuild an economy without a flourishing private sector; backed by an unapologetically pro-business government.

I committed to partnering with you in making our offer to the country one you could get behind.

And you gave us the ideas, energy and, in some cases, explicit support that was needed to win a strong majority and an even stronger mandate from the British people. A mandate to deliver our Plan for Change.

Today, I want to reflect on the progress that we have made as a government. I want to talk candidly about what I believe we need to do;

…And I want to provide a clear direction, some reassurance and - I hope - some excitement and optimism about the future.

Now I am extremely proud of the work that my department has done in the first seven months of this Government.

That includes our record-breaking International Investment Summit…where we secured £63bn of inward investment commitments for the UK…

…that was where we published our Industrial Strategy Green Paper…

…and where we launched our Industrial Strategy Council expertly led by Clare Barclay. I'm so glad Clare could join us ahead of the council's meeting later today.

Building on from the investment summit, at Davos last month, the Chancellor and I sent a clear message to the international community: that the UK is a great place to invest and do business. We have the lowest corporation tax in the G7, uncapped R&D tax credits, and 100% full expensing on capital allowances.

And ahead of our Trade Strategy's publication, we are leveraging our relationships with Europe, China, India and the Gulf and beyond so businesses can make the UK their base to connect with global markets.

And this is important, because in response to the announcements made by the US this week, I want to reiterate that under this government, the UK will always champion free, fair and open trade. That is what is in our national interest.

And where we have seen the opportunity for an active government to bring business and workers together, my department has always been on the pitch…

…Whether that's securing a better deal for the workforce at Port Talbot

…engaging on the takeover of Royal Mail…

…Or the renegotiated deal that saw Navantia acquiring Harland and Wolff and protect 1,000 jobs at shipyards across the UK. I will always roll up my sleeves and get involved.

But - being candid - none of this work in itself is sufficient, if it does not lead across the board to improved business confidence, to greater investment, and to higher household income, in every part of the country.

And on that I, and the whole government, recognise the challenge, and we accept it.

In the Budget the government had a responsibility to fix the foundations and restore economic stability.

And while I recognise that the Budget capped corporation tax, extended capital allowances, and raised the employment allowance threshold from this April, I know it asked a great deal of business. I don't underestimate that for a second.

We will never take that contribution - your contribution - for granted.

You are playing your part in fixing this country, in stabilising the public finances, in investing in our people and helping us rebuild our crumbling infrastructure.

And we know it is imperative that therefore we clear the path for the private sector to thrive… that we deliver the right conditions for growth.

It's why, on top of the £100 billion of investment unveiled at the Budget, this Government has thrown its full support behind a third runway at Heathrow.

It's why we're making the Oxford Cambridge growth corridor a success with the right transport and public services to foster growth.

It's why through our expanded Office for Investment and the National Wealth Fund we will be supporting transformative investments throughout the country from West Yorkshire to the West Midlands, and Glasgow and Greater Manchester.

The challenges we face as government make all the things we promised to do even more critical.

And I relish that.

And I don't believe there are easy answers to complex problems.

But I do believe that good policy, good strategies, and good government working hand-in-hand with the private sector, can make a difference.

And I want my constituents to feel, and to be, better off.

And only a pragmatic, business-orientated government can deliver that.

And that to me is what being pro-worker, and pro-business means.

And I believe this national UK Government is able to deliver on this mission because, fundamentally, we can offer what no-one else can:

First of all, political stability - sadly, a rare commodity in many countries these days.

Secondly, openness to the rest of the world - at a time where that is clearly coming under pressure.

And most importantly of all, we are offering a willingness to use our mandate in Parliament to transform the business and investor environment.

And we are using our Industrial Strategy to ensure that our policies are made with business, for business.

As you know, in October last year, we consulted on our Industrial Strategy Green Paper; our blueprint to channel investment and support into our country's high-growth sectors and high potential places.

In that green paper, we posed a series of questions, and you answered in great detail. You told us that you need access to a high-skilled workforce.

And that is why we have launched Skills England, bringing in flexibilities for the Growth and Skills levy, allowing for shorter apprenticeships and giving employers more control over training.

Meanwhile our Great Britain Working White Paper has already set out detailed plans to support people back into work.

And for key sectors such as AI and life sciences, we've committed to looking at visa routes for the most highly skilled, ensuring those routes continue to work for the UK. The upcoming Immigration White Paper will set out plans to make our immigration, skills, and visa systems work better and more coherently.

You told us that planning has become a by-word for inefficiency.

So, we're making it quicker and simpler for developers to build on brownfield land.

We're making it much easier to build laboratories, gigafactories, data centres, and digital network grid connections.

And we're preventing campaigners from repeatedly launching hopeless legal challenges against planning decisions.  

You have also told us that access to capital needs drastic improvement.

Here again we're listening and we're responding. That is why the Government is creating pension megafunds, unlocking billions of pounds of investment. At the same time, we're delivering on Lord Hill's Listing Review to allow the FCA to rewrite the UK's Prospectus Regime for faster fund-raising.

And, finally, you told us that we need a 'regulation reset' in this country. 

Day in, day out I hear from business leaders who say to me that regulation and regulators are too cumbersome.

They're too slow.

They're too focused on theoretical issues, with little understanding of how businesses and markets actually operate.

And I've heard that message loud and clear.

One of our foremost regulators, the Competition and Markets Authority, has recently made great strides in addressing some of these issues.

And today, my department is publishing a consultation on a new Strategic Steer for the CMA to accelerate this work.

This isn't about meaningless platitudes - about the 'cutting of red tape.'

It's about effective consumer protection, competition law and digital market powers so that we create a level-playing field for businesses to compete on. We need to address genuine harm done by those who are not playing by the rules.

Our Strategic Steer asks the CMA to minimise uncertainty for business - by being proactive, transparent, timely, predictable and responsive in its engagement.

And I know, under Sarah Cardell and the new Interim Chair, Doug Gurr, the CMA has already taken significant steps in adopting this approach…in always having growth and investment in mind.

Its extensive work around the merger of Vodafone and Three is a fantastic example of that…as is the CMA's launch of a Growth and Investment Council to identify opportunities for greater competition.

And there is more to come.

I know Sarah and the CMA have set out their plans to deliver real, meaningful reforms to the merger control processes already today. Its eyes are trained firmly on more direct engagement with businesses. On speeding up its decision-making to deliver more certainty for investors. On adopting a faster, more agile approach to protecting competition.

I fully endorse these measures because this Government believes in effective, independent institutions. In promoting competition and protecting competition - that is fundamental to our growth mission. And with the current CMA team in place, we want to support them every step of the way in the changes they're making.

I want to see that same level of ambition from our other regulators because right now, I don't think our regulatory environment is doing enough to drive investor confidence and support growth.

So, I'm taking this first step today but watch this space.

I'm serious about delivering our wider regulatory reform over the coming weeks and months…

…I'm also serious about building the pro-innovation, pro-worker, pro wealth creation economy that we promised at the general election. I know you in the room share that commitment, too.

I'm proud of the reforms that we've set out in the Employment Rights Bill - of the opportunities they will afford working class families and working-class communities like the one I grew up in.

I want everyone to benefit from the stronger economy I know we can have.

But I always said, however, that we would work with - and not against - business to deliver these generational reforms.

I said that we would never introduce changes that would make it harder for firms to hire with confidence.

And this is precisely why my department is consulting on many of the key aspects of our Make Work Pay reforms - not least on probationary periods.

I want a statutory probation period that lets businesses get a good sense of how new employees are performing.

And it's common sense to ensure that there are lighter touch standards for dismissal during those initial months of people starting a job.

I know how important this is for employers. And I get it.

It's why my department will continue to engage face-to-face with business to develop a sensible, balanced proposal before we go out for formal consultation.

And we will also consult on the length of the statutory probation period, with our preference being 9 months.

We have also made clear that the changes we make to unfair dismissal will come into effect no sooner than the autumn of next year.

I want there to be a buffer - a proper, business readiness period - so employers fully understand the details of our reforms, and can prepare long before they enter into force.

That is the right thing to do - for both employers and employees.

So, let there be no doubt - we are still the party of business.

And we are willing to do the difficult things.

Be that a third runway at Heathrow, a step change at the CMA, or stopping endless court challenges over the job-creating projects this country needs.

We can share our ideas and ambition with each other.

Take the big bets.

Take some risks.

Be the disruptors.

My desire to be your champion in government has never wavered.

And it is as resolute now as ever.

We have to go further and faster in driving growth.

And, friends, together, I know that we will.

Thank you very much.