The UK Labor Party on Tuesday won the support of 120 business leaders in a timely boost to its bid to unseat the ruling Conservatives at the next general election.
The coalition of CEOs and other leading figures, which includes some well-known names from the British business world, said in a joint letter that it was “time for change”.
The group argued that the UK economy was “plagued by instability, stagnation and a lack of long-term focus” and that the country lacked “the skills and infrastructure needed to flourish”.
“The Labor Party has shown that it has changed and wants to work with business to achieve the UK’s full economic potential,” said the letter published in The Times.
“We should now give him the opportunity to change the country and lead Britain into the future.”
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Its signatories include leading figures from various industries, from banking and advertising to retail and technology.
Jimmy Wales, the founder of Wikipedia, and Tom Kerridge, the restaurant owner, are among the notable names on the list.
The endorsement comes as Labor strives to show it has moved decisively away from a less business-friendly period under former left-wing leader Jeremy Corbyn.
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He presided over the party’s worst election result in decades in 2019 and stepped down as leader the following year.
The Conservatives, in power for 14 years, have typically commanded more trust from the British business community, but have seen that reputation damaged in recent years in the wake of Brexit and other controversies.
Former Prime Minister Liz Truss’s disastrous 49-day term in office in 2022, when her tax-cutting agenda spooked markets, has been blamed in particular for destroying confidence in the party’s reputation for economic competence.
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Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called the July 4 election, with the Conservatives well behind Labor in the polls.
His campaign got off to a shaky start, with a record number of post-World War II MPs announcing they would not run and signs of infighting erupting into public view.
Labor leader Keir Starmer and his finance spokeswoman Rachel Reeves – who is expected to become finance minister if the party wins power – have spent years courting business figures.
Reeves will stick to the strategy on Tuesday in a speech to industry leaders, promising to lead “the most pro-growth Treasury” in history, according to the Labor Party.
She will tell the audience that the party can now deliver “a government that is pro-worker and pro-business, knowing that each depends on the success of the other.”
