RUTH SUNDERLAND: The Great British takedown
The idea that Britain has become a backward backwater is a lie that can only serve rapacious overseas raiders, says RUTH SUNDERLAND
- Bashing Britain has become dangerously fashionable
- The anti-British chorus seems to consist mostly of wealthy, middle-aged white males
- They risk sounding like nagging corporate versions of Prince Harry
Bashing Britain has become dangerously fashionable.
It is a sad irony that in the run-up to the coronation, where the very best of this country will be shown to the world, it has become a knee-jerk reaction in certain business circles.
Microsoft boss Brad Smith lashed out last week when the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) flouted his £60bn takeover of video game maker Activision Blizzard.
He claimed the decision marked the “darkest day” in Microsoft’s four decades here, that it was “bad for Britain” and even, absurdly, that the EU is a better place to start a business than the UK.
He and fellow countryman Bobby Kotick unfoundedly slur the independent CMA. Yet, as the Mail on Sunday reported, the watchdog reached its conclusion after one of its largest investigations, with 30 employees looking at three million documents.
Broken Britain: The anti-British chorus appears to be mostly rich, middle-aged white males
It will be hard for authorities in other countries to ignore the investigation, and it cannot be dismissed by the tirades of a few selfish American executives.
These sorts of attacks on Britain are a variation of the old chestnut that the country is a seething mass of resentment, where successful people are belittled rather than celebrated. This is a cliché masquerading as truth: I highly doubt the UK has a global monopoly on envy.
But it has been loudly touted by certain CEOs, including THG’s Matt Molding.
This form of Brit-bashing has its roots in the Brexit referendum, when the bien-pensant global elite loftily assumed that Leave voters were ignorant and misinformed.
The anti-British chorus appears to be mainly made up of wealthy, middle-aged, entitled white men, who risk sounding like nagging corporate versions of Prince Harry.
None of them are objective intellectual observers, but have tremendous self-interest in the game, in the form of personal shareholdings or rewards linked to the success of deals.
They seem to confuse their individual experience of being thwarted with injustice on a national scale.
The pile-up took off in Kwasi Kwarteng’s mini-Budget, as everyone joined in. One analyst even coined the term “moron premium” to explain the rise in interest rates. The targeted idiots may have been politicians, but the whole country was involved by association.
There is no denying that there have been a number of unnecessary own goals. The abhorrent allegations of assault at the CBI hardly help Britain’s image abroad. And some of the Chancellor’s corporate tax policies are myopic. The Mail’s ‘Scrap The Tourist Tax’ campaign highlights how the UK is lagging behind as a luxury shopping destination for visitors.
Raising corporate taxes is also a bad move, as it discourages long-term investment when companies in the US and EU are offered huge subsidies. Respected CEOs, including AstraZeneca boss Pascal Soriot, have warned that the UK is becoming unattractive by comparison.
Even John Neill, Unipart’s veteran boss, says he is considering moving investments to the US because of the subsidies.
Serious comments can be made about the competitiveness of our tax system.
But the idea that Britain has become a backward backwater is a lie that only rapacious overseas raiders or failed founders trying to shift the blame can serve.
Alison Rose, who as CEO of NatWest is the biggest lender to British companies, understands the reality. Her take on the idea that Britain is a bad place to do business can be summed up in one word: ‘Nonsense.’