New expert council formed to maximise UK investment offer

Today (April 27) Minister for Investment Gerry Grimstone has announced the creation of an Investment Council to act as an advisory body to the UK Government on foreign investment, to improve and enhance the UK’s business environment for foreign investors. 

Made up of private sector senior leaders from around the globe in a variety of industries – from technology and energy to infrastructure and financial services – the Council will cement the investor lens in the Government’s inward investment strategy.

The Council, led by Minister Grimstone, will meet twice a year and on an ad hoc basis to provide high-level strategic advice to the Department for International Trade and wider government, operating alongside the recently formed Office for Investment. 

Members will share their experiences in the UK market and views on UK competitiveness, and advise on policy and regulatory changes that could improve the attractiveness of the UK for foreign investors. The aim of the council will be to drive investment into priority areas and sectors, levelling up the whole of the UK through an investment-led recovery. 

International Trade Secretary Liz Truss said: 

Alongside the Office for Investment, this Investment Council led by Minister Grimstone is a major leap towards ensuring foreign investors are heard and fostering a business environment that is fair and drives innovation and economic growth across the UK. 

Together with our recently established Trade and Investment Hubs, the Investment Council and the Office for Investment signal to our global partners that the UK is ready and open for business as an independent trading nation.  

Minister for Investment, Gerry Grimstone said: 

Investment sits at the heart of our economic recovery. It drives jobs, innovation, and helps to level up the whole of the UK. 

The Investment Council will deliver the expertise of influential global investors right to the heart of Government, offering invaluable private sector insight on how we can make the UK the best place to invest as we build back better, and stronger, from Covid-19. 

The Council will help to ensure that the UK remains one of the most attractive investment destinations in the world and that foreign investment continues to support jobs across the country, with FDI alone creating a total of 56,117 jobs in the last financial year. Outputs from the first meeting will be shared across Government to inform strategy.

The unpaid Council members have been selected in strict accordance with Cabinet Office guidance covering on direct ministerial appointments. The members include: 

Katherine Bennett, CBE, Senior Vice President UK , Airbus 

Anne Glover, CBE, CEO, Amadeus Capital Partners

Andrew Sillitoe, Co-CEO, Apax 

Gert Dijkstra, Senior Managing Director, All Pensions Group 

Christian Salbaing​, Deputy Chairman, Hutchison Whampoa (Europe) Limited

James Bardrick, Head of Citi UK, Citi 

Tara McGeehan, UK President, Conseillers en gestion et informatique (CGI) UK and Australia

Alain Carrier, Senior Managing Director & Head of International & Europe​, CPP Investment Board 

Frank Appel, CEO, Deutsche Post DHL 

Sam Hockman, CEO Futures & The Public Sector, Engie

Alison Kay, Managing Partner for Client Service UK, Ernst and Young 

Chow Kiat Lim, CEO, GIC

Marc Waters, Managing Director, UK, Ireland, Middle East & Africa, Hewlett Packard Enterprise

Alistair Dormer, Executive Vice President, Hitachi 

Mark Tucker, Group Chairman, HSBC 

Ignacio S. Galan, Chairman & CEO, Iberdrola Energy 

Georgiana (JoJo) de Noronha, President Northern Europe, The Kraft Heinz Company

Nigel Wilson, CEO, Legal and General 

Paul Livingston, CEO, Lockheed Martin UK

Shemara Wikramanayake, CEO​, Macquarie Group 

Dr Anish Shah, Managing Director and CEO, Mahindra Group

Mohamed Mansour, Founder and Chairman, Man Capital  

Professor Dame Nancy Rothwell, President and Vice Chancellor, The University of Manchester / Chair of the Russell Group of Universities  

Julia Prescot, Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer, Meridiam

Hirohiko Miyata, Chief Representative of Europe Bloc; Managing Director of Mitsui & Co. Europe PLC, Mitsui & Co. Europe PLC

Clare Woodman, CBE, Head of EMEA and CEO, Morgan Stanley 

Waleed Al Mokarrab Al Muhairi, Deputy Group CEO (Alternative Investments and Infrastructure), Mubadala Investment Company

Stefano Agostini, CEO, UK & Ireland, Nestle  

Jason Goodall, Board member and former Global CEO, NTT Ltd

Alexis Dormandy, CEO, Oxford Sciences Innovation 

Annette King, CEO UK ​ and Chair: Creative Industries Trade and Investment Board (CITIB), Publicis Groupe UK 

Anja-Isabel Dotzenrath, CEO, RWE Renewables

William Vereker, Chair, Santander UK

Liv Garfield, CBE, CEO, Severn Trent Water

Carl Ennis, CEO, Siemens GB

Jon Parr, President Global Crop Protection, Syngenta

Natarajan Chandrasekaran, Chairman of the Board of Tata Sons, Tata Sons 

Allison Kirkby, President and CEO, Telia Company AB

Eva Lindholm, Group Managing Director, Head of Wealth Management UK and Jersey, UBS 

Robin Watson, CBE, CEO, Wood

Later this year, the UK will host a Global Investment Summit to secure foreign investment in UK green industries of the future. Hosted by the Prime Minister and supported by members of the Royal Family, the summit will galvanise foreign investment in the UK’s green tech and renewable energy industries ahead of the COP26 Climate Summit. 

Jojo de Noronha, President Kraft Heinz Northern Europe said: 

I am hugely supportive of the purpose behind the UK Investment Council. With three manufacturing sites in the UK, including Europe’s largest food factory based in Wigan, we continue to make multi-million-pound investments in state-of-the-art manufacturing to support our growth as well as our ESG commitments.  

I believe we can make a valued contribution to ensuring that investment in the UK drives growth and economic opportunity.”   

Marc Waters, Managing Director, UK, Ireland, Middle East and Africa of Hewlett Packard Enterprise, said: 

At this pivotal moment for the UK’s future in the global economy, the need for sustainable inward investment is more important than ever.  

It is positive to see Government increasing focus on ensuring the UK maintains its competitive advantages in the investment landscape. I look forward to working with this diverse group of business leaders to support Government efforts to bolster UK CEO, RWE Renewables GmbH, said: 

I am delighted to be joining the UK Investment Council. The UK is one of the key strategic markets in which RWE is committed to expanding its renewables portfolio. 

Through our investments we are dedicated to helping the UK Government achieve its target to quadruple offshore wind capacity to 40 gigawatts by 2030.  

The Council will help create the right framework for King, CEO of Publicis Groupe UK, said:  

Maintaining the UK’s attractiveness to foreign investors is vital for productivity, innovation and of course jobs.  

As we emerge from the pandemic, we have a responsibility to build back better, and ensure we are creating the right conditions to attract a wide range of international investment.  

The Investment Council is a smart way to facilitate the right level of private sector input.