A new business council has been appointed by the UK Prime Minister to report from the business frontlines and to encourage stability and growth in the UK economy.
Fourteen business leaders, from a range of sectors across the UK economy, join the Prime Minister’s new Business Council. Chief Executives from AstraZeneca, NatWest Group and BAE Systems are among the fourteen business leaders joining the council, alongside SSE, Google Deepmind, Sainsbury’s and Vodafone. Other companies represented on the council include GSK, Aviva, Shell, Sage, Taylor Wimpey, Diageo and Barclays.
These leaders are recognised as trusted experts in their respective fields and are in charge of some of the country’s biggest employers in strategically important industries for UK growth, from construction, life-sciences and tech, to financial services and energy.
Together, they employ around 330,000 people across the country, with an even greater reach throughout their supply chain and a presence globally too.
The newly appointed Business Council will be a forum to bring a real-world perspective on how the current economic climate is impacting business and how government and industry can work together to boost investment and innovation, drive productivity and create highly skilled jobs.
Only time will tell if the UK government listens to the appointed business leaders. Certainly, encouraging investment, removing barriers to trade, and encouraging new opportunities would be welcomed by all businesses.
The Chancellor, John Healey, has given a number of speeches explaining how he intends to boost growth, reduce red tape and maintain fiscal responsibility.
The latest Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reveal a depressing landscape for UK companies. Foreign acquisitions of UK companies soared in value to £25.4 billion, up £9.7 billion from Q1 2026 and £15.7 billion higher than Q2 2025, highlighting how cheap UK company valuations are compared to foreign markets.