The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has announced a new Business Council, comprised of prominent UK business leaders, to design and drive the future of the British economy.

The founding partners will be uniquely placed to shape the BCC’s policy and influencing, with the Council forming part of the organisation’s new national offer to businesses.

Heathrow, Drax, IHG Hotels & Resorts and BP have joined the Council as the first founding partners.

BCC Director General Shevaun Haviland and BCC President Baroness Martha Lane Fox will join a wider group of business leaders at a roundtable meeting in central London this afternoon (Monday, 5th June) to discuss the Council and the BCC’s new national offer.

Shevaun Haviland, Director General, BCC, said: “Over the past few months, working closely with the Chamber Network, 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.

“These businesses want to be part of a framework that’s rooted in their local communities, but with the ability to shape the national and international debate. 

“In response we have developed a new offer, the Business Council. I’m delighted to have Heathrow, Drax, IHG and BP join us as the first founding partners and look forward to speaking with potential members this afternoon at our roundtable event.

“The Council is a long-term project and will bring together leaders from across UK industry to consider the key policy issues faced by British businesses, and work on Future of the Economy initiative, convened by our President, Baroness Martha Lane Fox. This initiative will focus on five challenges: Digital Revolution, People and Work, Net Zero, Global Britain and the High Street. 

“These challenges will form the backdrop to the next general election, which we know will come before the end of next year, and which everyone in Westminster is already gearing up for. The voice of business needs to be heard loud and clear, and now is the right time for us to speak up.”

Responding to the news, fintech entrepreneur Khalid Talukder, co-founder, DKK Partners said: “The BCC is the driving force behind the Britain’s entrepreneurs and innovators, and this new council will help give the organisation a much bigger voice on national issues in the UK and beyond. As the economy struggles with challenging conditions, having multiple business groups to clearly communicate policy needs and issues affecting employers can only be a good thing.”

Steven Mooney, Founder and CEO of FundMyPitch said: “Entrepreneurs deserve a strong voice to communicate their concerns, and this new council should serve a platform for company owners, innovators and start up brands to share their insights. Without these groups, business leaders would have little or no collective voice in the market, something which would inevitably stifle economic productivity and growth.  It’s time to take the views of business leaders seriously, and this new organisation should get to work, clearly communicating the challenges companies face and working with the government to find solutions for the long term.”

ClimateTech expert Laimonas Noreika, Founder of HeavyFinance, said: “Industry groups play a vital role in communicating the requirements the business community on a national scale and to the government. In increasingly uncertain economic times, with inflation remaining stubbornly high, and the climate change emergency requiring urgent action, this new business council has a huge task ahead. 

“Key to this effort must be giving businesses access to the necessary funding to cut emissions and deliver cleaner, greener services and also recognise that action on the environment is a collective responsibility we all have to uphold,” he added.