With a General Election edging ever closer and the polls suggesting a change of government is on the cards, many businesses are starting to think more seriously about what a Labour administration means for them.
Central to the Labour Party’s pitch at the election is the idea of its five missions – centred around economic growth, clean energy, the NHS, reducing crime and unlocking opportunity for all. But what actually is a mission, and what does it mean for business?
The concept of ‘missions’ has been popularised by the economist Mariana Mazzucato, the founding director of the UCL Institute for Innovation & Public Purpose (IIPP) and author of multiple books. The premise is that by uniting the government around central missions, rather than individual policy priorities siloed in different government departments, then you can move policy from a short-term reactionary policy to delivering long-term solutions.
The key example used by Mazzucato, and frequently in Labour circles, is President Kennedy’s 1962 pledge to put a man on the moon by 1970, which united many hundreds of companies and hundreds of thousands of workers around a singular, ultimately successful, mission.
Whether Labour can refocus the Whitehall machine around such lofty ideals remains to be seen, but the general principle about focusing on long-term goals rather than short-term announcements has to be a positive step for business and the country.
For too long, businesses have had to adapt to ongoing policy uncertainty from the government, and a bit of stability would be welcome. Businesses need stability and confidence in the economy in order to invest; they need to know that the tax regime won’t change dramatically and that the skills pipeline is there to meet their future needs, particularly when we are competing in a global market.
Talk of a new industrial strategy and unblocking the planning system also appear welcome. The UK last published a formal industrial strategy in 2017 under Theresa May, and a coordinated approach to UK industrial policy is much needed, whilst the planning system is holding back businesses across the country, particularly in the South East and the Oxford-Cambridge corridor.
Labour has spent a lot of time and energy over the past few years courting business in an attempt to rebuild its reputation after the Corbyn years, and the rhetoric at least appears to be aligned with what business needs. If Labour is serious about delivering economic growth, then removing the constraints on business to deliver growth must be central to the agenda and the long-term approach of its ‘missions’ should be welcomed.
However, as ever with politics, the proof will be in what is done and not what is said, and with the public finances in dire straits, businesses can only look forward in hope, not expectation.
