European businesses celebrate the UK’s calls for change, says executive chairman of COBCOE David Thomas
Other countries in Europe are celebrating that the UK has put a case for change on the European agenda, according to executive chairman of the Council of British Chambers of Commerce in Europe (COBCOE) David Thomas.
Speaking to City PM Thomas said:
The status quo situation in Europe is not tenable from a business perspective. Businesses across Europe cannot see Europe staying competitive if it does not change, and there has to be change inside the European Union, in terms of how the commission operates, how regulation happens, how finance is provided and how skills are developed as well as other issues.
We have to drive competitiveness. You have to stay competitive whether you are Germany, Italy, Poland or the UK. That is the critical message.
And if the British government presents the case for change as how it can get Europe to improve its competitiveness for the benefit of the whole of Europe, they'll provide hooks for other countries to come in and tackle these issues.
"The UK has to present this as a proposal for Europe and not just for the UK," Thomas added.
Thomas' comments come the day after Prime Minister David Cameron sent a letter to European Council President Donald Tusk to lay out his demands for treaty change, including boosting competitiveness and reducing the burden of red tape.
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It's important to Thomas, whose organisation represents British chambers of commerce across Europe, as he says if Europe doesn't change, it will weaken itself globally, lagging further and further behind the rest of the world.
Asian economies have gone "way beyond" the position of Europe in skills development, in making and helping workers develop relevant skills for todays world, including technology skills, he added. "European businesses feel themselves to be in catch up mode with the US and Asia."
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Regulation doesn't have to be negative either, he said. "The issue is that business does not believe regulators at the European level are talking enough to business about how business should be regulated."
And it's not just business leaders who feel the change is needed. Senior civil servants at the European Commission "know the situation must change. There has to be an evolution, there has to be a change that helps European businesses become more competitive in the global economy."
"Everyone recognises that, the question is how far different countries will be willing to go."