By Jessica Frank-Keyes
Kemi Badenoch has criticised businesses for focussing on virtue signalling rather than the bottom line – and said UK plc is afraid of taking a risk, City A.M. can reveal.
The comments will ignite a political row, with Labour describing the business secretary’s comments an “insult” to British entrepeneurs.
The business secretary appeared at the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship (ARC) summit in London this week where she spoke about the need for business confidence for growth.
Speaking to UnHerd editor Freddie Sayers, she said: “Businesses are now competing not on who can make the most profit but who can signal the most virtue.
“There has been a fundamental cultural shift in terms of attitude around risk and what I call safety-ism. We fear the entrepreneurial now and people prefer safety.”
And Badenoch, who is also minister for women and equalities, added: “We talk about risk as if it’s a bad thing rather than something that generates creativity, innovation and reward.”
In response, her counterpart, Labour’s shadow business secretary Jonathan Reynolds, claimed Badenoch’s comments were “extraordinary” and an “insult” to British firms.
He told City A.M.: “It’s extraordinary that instead of taking some responsibility for the UK having the second lowest forecast growth in the G7, sky-high inflation and a rocketing cost of living, the business secretary wants to criticise UK business.
“Labour is now the undisputed party of business because we respect businesses while the government chooses to insult them.”
And Reynolds, who hosted Labour’s business events at the party’s annual conference last month, added: “Perhaps if the business secretary spent less time attending crack-pot events and more time engaging with business she would know how badly her government is letting down British business.”
A source close to Badenoch said: “Labour are the party of high taxes, petty business regulations and pandering to trade union demands.
“Reynolds’ insults do little other than expose the intellectual vacuum at the heart of the Labour Party.
“The record of the Conservative Government is clear for all to see: unemployment is down 4 per cent since 2010, inflation is falling, wages are rising and the economy is growing.”
