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Labour won the support of 120 business leaders, a likely sign of support for its strategy to attract the City of London and its promise to restore “stability” to the UK economy if it wins the election.
Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves is expected to say in a speech on Tuesday that the Labour Party has changed forever and will become a “pro-business, pro-worker” party if it wins the July 4 election.
Ahead of the speech, 120 business leaders wrote a letter to The Times in support of Labour and criticising the Conservative government’s management of the economy, which they said was “plagued by instability, stagnation and a lack of long-term vision”.
Labour regularly seeks support from businesses during the election campaign as part of its efforts to convince voters of its ability to manage the economy, and Reeves is likely to see the letter as a major coup.
The letter said: “Labour represents a change and wants to work with business to unleash the UK economy’s full potential. Now is the time to give Labour the chance to change the country and lead the UK into the future.”
Mr Reeves and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer have been campaigning for businesses in the City for several years in what has become known as the “smoked salmon and scrambled eggs offensive”.
This highlights Starmer’s efforts to “neutralise” the Labour Party, which shifted left under former leader Jeremy Corbyn.
Signatories to the letter include former Aston Martin chief executive Andy Palmer, former Heathrow Airport CEO John Holland-Kaye, JD Sports chairman Andrew Higginson and former JP Morgan Cazenove deputy chairman Charles Harman.
Charles Rundell, who stepped down as chairman of the Financial Conduct Authority in 2022 and has since been at odds with the government over the regulation of crypto assets, was also one of the signatories along with Iceland’s founder Sir Malcolm Walker.
Mr Walker signed the Conservative business letter during the 2015 election campaign, and his son Richard was a Conservative parliamentary candidate until he left the party in 2023, but backed Mr Starmer as prime minister this year.
Other signatories include former Tesco Bank chief executive Benny Higgins and Atom Bank boss Mark Mullen.
The letter states: “As UK business leaders and investors, we believe it is time for change. For too long, our economy has been plagued by instability, stagnation and a lack of long-term perspective.”
“The UK has the potential to be one of the strongest economies in the world. To emerge from the stagnation of the last decade we urgently need a new vision and I hope that taking this public stand will convince other countries of that need.”
Some of the most prominent signatories have retired from their best-known senior business roles, and the UK’s largest listed companies have largely avoided signing the letter.
Most of the big publicly listed companies have been careful to avoid overtly leaning towards party politics, making it harder for them to win public support.
In his speech on Tuesday, Reeves will urge business leaders to work with the next Labor government, arguing that cooperation between the two is essential to boost economic growth.
She will say her plans are “based on partnership with business”, but also say a Labour government will be “pro-worker”.
The Conservatives argue Labour’s “New Deal” on workers’ rights will stifle growth with new rules that would limit zero-hours contracts and give employees more rights from day one on the job.
Reeves argues that responsible employers would welcome a range of measures to stop competitors using poor workplace practices from under-hiring them.
