Sunak’s business advisers remain neutral as election trade dispute intensifies | Business News

Rishi Sunak’s committee of business advisers refused to publicly support the government’s economic policy record on Tuesday, amid a growing row over the Labor Party’s efforts to steal the Conservative Party’s traditional mantle as ‘the party of business’

Sky News contacted all 15 companies represented on the Prime Minister’s business council to see if their bosses would publicly support the Tories, but none agreed to do so.

Among the companies whose executives sat on the board – which is believed to have met no more than twice since its launch in January – were BT Group, ITV, Nationwide and Unilever.

Aircraft engine maker Rolls Royce Holdings agreed to allow its Derby headquarters to be used for a campaign speech by Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, on Tuesday, but said it remained neutral.

Its chief executive, Tufan Erginbilgic, has also been a member of Sunak’s business council since its launch.

Some of the 15 companies did not respond to Sky News’ questions, while others stated, either officially or on an unattributable basis, that they would remain politically neutral during the election campaign.

One of those involved said that his chief executive’s participation in the council was intended to contribute opinions in order to influence government policy.

“[Their] engagement is not a direct endorsement of the ruling political party’s views, as these will be many and varied,” the company said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Although this neutrality is not unusual for the heads of large public companies, it highlights the difficulty that the Conservatives will have, in the run-up to the 4th of July, in persuading big business names to publicly support the party.

The Conservatives have historically outperformed Labor in gaining public endorsement from big business, but this time they were defeated with a pro-Labour letter signed by more than 120 businesspeople and published on Tuesday.

None of the signatories to the Labor letter are serving the FTSE-100’s top executives, with the only current public company heavyweight on the list being Andy Higginson, chairman of JD Sports Fashion.

Sky News business presenter Ian King revealed on Tuesday that several companies listed as supporters were inactive, while one of the signatories, WPP executive Karen Blackett, had already left the company she was named as working for.

Labor has also been criticized by the Unite union for trumpeting the involvement of John Holland-Kaye, the former chief executive of Heathrow Airport, over its use of controversial “fire and rehire” processes during the pandemic.

In the pro-Labour letter, business signatories said the British economy was “plagued by instability, stagnation and a lack of long-term focus”.

Sky News revealed last week that the Conservatives have contacted business leaders since Sunak called the election, asking them to take part in media opportunities, provide quotes in support of manifesto promises and organize events and visits for ministers.

Those efforts are being led by Lord Petitgas, the former Morgan Stanley executive who for months was the Prime Minister’s special adviser on business.

Conservative members rejected Labour’s letter as “a damp squib” which showed that Sir Keir Starmer and Ms Reeves had “completely failed to win the trust of big business in the UK”.