This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/jun/05/business-council-lobby-group-launched-cbi-faces-crucial-vote
The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| New business lobby group launched as CBI faces crucial vote | New business lobby group launched as CBI faces crucial vote |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| The Business Council is set up by British Chambers of Commerce backed by big companies | The Business Council is set up by British Chambers of Commerce backed by big companies |
| A new business lobby group backed by big companies including BP and Drax has been launched, a day before a key vote that will determine the future of the embattled Confederation of British Industry. | |
| The Business Council, launched by the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), aims to bring together business leaders “who are looking for a different kind of representation”. | |
| The new body, which counts Heathrow and IHG Hotels & Resorts as founding members, said its aim was to “design and drive the future of the British economy”. It will convene a day before the CBI holds an extraordinary meeting of its members, who will vote on its future. | |
| The CBI, which faces job losses as it fights for survival amid a crisis prompted by sexual misconduct allegations, needs at least half of its members to back the proposals for change put forward by its new director general, Rain Newton-Smith. | |
| The group has received backing from 13 companies, including the manufacturing firm Siemens and Microsoft, while a string of businesses, including John Lewis and BMW, have cut ties. | |
| “Over the past few months we have been talking to the nation’s largest corporates and it has become clear to us that they are looking for a different kind of representation,” said Shevaun Haviland, the director general of the BCC. | “Over the past few months we have been talking to the nation’s largest corporates and it has become clear to us that they are looking for a different kind of representation,” said Shevaun Haviland, the director general of the BCC. |
| Haviland and Martha Lane Fox, the BCC president, will meet business leaders on Monday to discuss the work of its new council and what it can offer. | Haviland and Martha Lane Fox, the BCC president, will meet business leaders on Monday to discuss the work of its new council and what it can offer. |
| “These businesses want to be part of a framework that is rooted in their local communities, but with the ability to shape the national and international debate,” Haviland said. | |
| Newton-Smith, who has described Tuesday’s vote as “critical” to the CBI’s future, has called on the membership to back her agenda for change. | |
| Sign up to Business Today | Sign up to Business Today |
| Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning | Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning |
| after newsletter promotion | after newsletter promotion |
| “I hope we are emerging from what has been a really deep and painful crisis for us as an organisation,” she told the BBC. “I came back as a female leader to lead the organisation because I really believe in the people we have. I’ve seen just how effective we are when we have a collective voice of business.” | “I hope we are emerging from what has been a really deep and painful crisis for us as an organisation,” she told the BBC. “I came back as a female leader to lead the organisation because I really believe in the people we have. I’ve seen just how effective we are when we have a collective voice of business.” |