Prime Minister Theresa May said that Brexit would create new opportunities for trade deals [EPA]
May
tries aims to soothe fears of business leaders at key speech in London, saying
doors will open to "old allies".
British Prime Minister Theresa May has told business leaders in
the UK that while leaving the European Union creates uncertainty in the market,
there will also be opportunities for "dynamic trading agreements".
Speaking on Monday at the annual Confederation of British Industry
conference in London, May said that the doors would be open to doing business
with "old allies" in other parts of the world.
She also said that her government would invest an extra $2.5bn in
science research and development by 2020, and committed to plans of the
previous government to introduce a 17 percent rate for corporate tax - the
lowest in the G20.
"Today, Britain has firms and researchers leading in some of
the most exciting fields of human discovery," she said.
"We need to back them and turn research strengths into
commercial success."
Al Jazeera's Laurence Lee, reporting from London, said that
businesses are worried about the instability caused by the lack of knowledge as
to what a "Brexit" - or Britain's departure from the EU - will
actually look like.
"Theresa May and the government can't and won't tell [the
business leaders] because that will give away their negotiating position to the
European Union," Lee said.
After having narrowly voted in favour of leaving the EU, the UK
will have to negotiate the terms of its exit with the union's other member
states.
Business leaders voiced concerns to the prime minister on Monday
about the impact of Britain's departure from the EU, and the uncertainty
surrounding the country's future trading terms with member states.
"Businesses are inevitably considering the cliff-edge
scenario -- a sudden and overnight transformation in trading conditions,"
said Paul Drechsler, CBI president.
"If this happens, firms could find themselves stranded in a
regulatory no man's land."
Others echoed the business chief's concerns.
"I'm not too optimistic about Brexit," a representative
from German engineering firm Bosch told AFP news agency, speaking on condition
of anonymity. "I don't see things moving in the right direction".
May also told businesses "how to behave", according to
Lee.
"She went on to give businesses a bit of a lecture."
"She basically said [Brexit is] a bit of a wake-up call
because the working people in the country don't like to see the businesses get
very rich while they're getting poorer.
She said [public] trust in business was at 35 percent, that
businesses had to embrace reform," our correspondent said.
May also said that the government intended on being more
interventionist with regards to corporate governance, such as enforcing harsher
tax laws.
"She said that businesses needed to give back to communities
that served them," Lee reported.
"Clearly, that's a completely different set of priorities
from the businesses which want to get back into the EU to avoid tariffs - she
says she is working for the working poor in the country."
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